ABSTRACT
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OVERALL MENTAL HEALTH AND ANXIETY SYMPTOMS AMONG FAMILIES RECEIVING FREE NUTRITIOUS MEALS
At SDN 1 Mangkujayan Ponorogo
By: Anisah Qothrun Nada
Anxiety is one of the most common mental disorders and can be triggered by psychosocial stress, including household food insecurity. Uncertainty regarding the continuity, quality, and safety of the Free Nutritious Meal Program may affect the overall mental health of beneficiary parents/guardians and trigger anxiety symptoms. This study aimed to determine the relationship between overall mental health and anxiety symptoms among families receiving the Free Nutritious Meal Program at SDN 1 Mangkujayan Ponorogo.
This study used a descriptive analytic design with a cross-sectional approach. The population consisted of 526 families/guardians, with a sample of 228 respondents selected using proportional simple random sampling. Data were collected using the WHO Well-Being Index (WHO-5) questionnaire to measure overall mental health and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) questionnaire to measure anxiety symptoms, then analyzed using the Chi-Square test with a significance level of α = 0.05.
The results showed that most respondents had good overall mental health, 135 people (59.2%), while 93 respondents (40.8%) had low overall mental health. Regarding anxiety symptoms, most respondents were in the normal category, 141 people (61.8%), while 87 respondents (38.2%) experienced anxiety symptoms.
The Chi-Square test yielded a p value of 0.001 (p < 0.05), so H0 was rejected and H1 was accepted, indicating a significant relationship between overall mental health and anxiety symptoms among families receiving the Free Nutritious Meal Program at SDN 1 Mangkujayan Ponorogo. This study recommends strengthening family-based psychosocial support and nutrition education to improve mental well-being while reducing anxiety symptoms among program recipients.

Keywords: Overall Mental Health, Anxiety Symptoms, Free Nutritious Meal Program, WHO-5, GAD-7