Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Psychiatry 1735-4587 17 4 2022 09 14 401 410 Neda Ezzeddin Department of Community Nutrition, Faculty of Nutrition Sciences and Food Technology, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Hassan Eini-Zinab Department of Community Nutrition, Faculty of Nutrition Sciences and Food Technology, National Nutrition and Food Technology Institute, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Naser Kalantari Department of Community Nutrition, Faculty of Nutrition Sciences and Food Technology, National Nutrition and Food Technology Institute, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Mohammad Ahmadi Department of Community Nutrition, Faculty of Nutrition Sciences and Food Technology, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Zeinab Beheshti Department of Community Nutrition, Faculty of Nutrition Sciences and Food Technology, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. 2021 10 20 Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic is a crisis accompanied by multiple psychological consequences (including fear of COVID-19) and threatens the food security status of millions of people. This study aimed to examine the association between fear of COVID-19 and food insecurity, mediated by perceived stress. Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 2871 Iranian participants (18-80 years), recruited through the Social Media during the COVID-19 epidemic. The demographic and socio-economic information questionnaire, Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS), COVID-19 fear scale (FCV-19S), Cohen's Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14) and Perceived Social Support Questionnaire (MSPSS) were used in data gathering. Descriptive and analytical analyses were done using SPSS 22.0 and Amos 22.0 was used for structural equation modeling (SES). Results: Food insecurity has significant positive direct and indirect (mediated by perceived stress) correlations with fear of COVID-19 (P < 0.05). It was also shown that perceived social support could negatively relate to fear of COVID-19 through the pathways of food security status or perceived stress (P < 0.05). Among women, the presence of a child under 5 had a significant direct association with fear of COVID-19 (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Food insecurity was associated with more perceived fear of COVID-19 among the studied population. The crisis caused by COVID-19 highlights the need to increase social resilience through developing and implementing appropriate strategies to prevent and mitigate social costs (whether physical, psychological, or nutritional). https://ijps.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijps/article/view/2986 https://ijps.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijps/article/download/2986/1083