scholarly journals Healthy food availability in small urban food stores: a comparison of four US cities

2009 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 1031-1035 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Nelson Laska ◽  
Kelley E Borradaile ◽  
June Tester ◽  
Gary D Foster ◽  
Joel Gittelsohn
Keyword(s):  
Food Availability ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
Low Fat ◽  
Limited Region ◽  
Food Stores ◽  
Healthy Food Availability ◽  
Staple Foods ◽  
Cross Site

AbstractObjectiveGiven that small food stores may be important retail food sources in low-income urban communities, our objective was to examine cross-city comparative data documenting healthy food availability within such facilities, particularly those located in low-income areas and nearby schools.DesignFood stores in Baltimore, Maryland; Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota; Oakland, California; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania were selected for assessment based on proximity to low-income schools. Stores were defined as: (i) single-aisle (n 45); (ii) small (2–5 aisles; n 52); and (iii) large (≥6 aisles; n 8). Staff conducted in-store audits to assess the presence/absence of twenty-eight healthy items, organized within five categories: (i) fresh fruits/vegetables, (ii) processed fruits/vegetables, (iii) healthy beverages/low-fat dairy, (iv) healthy snacks and (v) other healthy staple foods.ResultsThe availability of healthy food items was low, particularly in single-aisle and small stores, and there was significant cross-site variability in the availability of healthy snacks (P < 0·0001) and other healthy staple foods (P < 0·0001). No cross-site differences existed for fruits/vegetables or healthy beverages/low-fat dairy availability. Healthy food availability scores increased significantly with store size for nearly all food/beverage categories (P < 0·01).ConclusionsOverall, healthy food availability in these venues was limited. Region-specific factors may be important to consider in understanding factors influencing healthy food availability in small urban markets. Data suggest that efforts to promote healthy diets in low-income communities may be compromised by a lack of available healthy foods. Interventions targeting small stores need to be developed and tailored for use in urban areas across the USA.

scholarly journals Association of Home Food Availability with Prediabetes and Diabetes among Adults in the United States

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1209
Author(s):  
Jennifer R. McAtee ◽  
Meng-Hua Tao ◽  
Christian King ◽  
Weiwen Chai
Keyword(s):  
Food Availability ◽  
The United States ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
Inverse Association ◽  
Healthy Foods ◽  
Low Fat ◽  
Health And Nutrition ◽  
Healthy Food Availability ◽  
Home Food ◽  
Home Food Availability

This study examined associations of home food availabilities with prediabetes and diabetes among 8929 adults (20–70 years) participating in 2007–2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were estimated by logistic regression. Relative to non-diabetic participants (individuals without diabetes or prediabetes), prediabetes participants were associated with lower availabilities of green vegetables (OR = 0.82; 95% CI = 0.73–0.91; p = 0.0006) and fat-free/low-fat milk (OR = 0.80, 95% CI = 0.65–0.89; p = 0.001) and higher sugary drink availability (OR = 1.24, 95% CI = 1.04–1.48; p = 0.02), adjusting for age, sex, and ethnicity (Model 1). The associations remained significant for vegetables (p = 0.005) and fat-free/low-fat milk (p = 0.02) adjusting for additional confounders (body mass index, education, Model 2). Adjusting for dietary components did not change the above results (in model 2) significantly. Participants with high healthy food availability scores had approximately 31% reduction (p = 0.003) in odds of prediabetes compared to those with low scores in Model 1. No associations were detected for diabetes except for fat-free/low-fat milk availability, for which an inverse association was observed in Model 1 (OR = 0.80, 95% CI = 0.65–0.99; p = 0.04). The results show prediabetes participants had lower availability of healthy foods and higher availability of unhealthy foods, suggesting the need to improve healthy food availability at home for this population.

scholarly journals The mismatch between observational measures and residents’ perspectives on the retail food environment: a mixed-methods approach in the Heart Healthy Hoods study

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (16) ◽  
pp. 2970-2979 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Díez ◽  
Roberto Valiente ◽  
Carmen Ramos ◽  
Reyes García ◽  
Joel Gittelsohn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Food Availability ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Food Environment ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
Mixed Methods Approach ◽  
Retail Food Environment ◽  
Observational Measures ◽  
Healthy Food Availability ◽  
Retail Food

AbstractObjectiveTo gain a deeper understanding of the retail food environment by investigating similarities and differences between objective measures and residents’ perspectives.DesignThe study incorporated Geographic Information System (GIS)-based measures, in-store surveys and the results from a larger photovoice project. We combined these data using a convergent parallel mixed-methods approach.SettingWe conducted this study in a low-income neighbourhood in Madrid (Spain) in 2016.SubjectsWe assessed healthy food availability, accessibility and affordability using GIS-based measures and in-store audits. We also analysed the photographs and discussions from twelve participants who engaged in a photovoice project on their food environment.ResultsQuantitative results depicted a widely served and highly accessible retail food environment, in which supermarkets scored highest in terms of healthy food availability (36·5 out of 39) and 98·9 % of residents could access a healthy food store within a walking travel distance of less than 15 min. Qualitative results showed that participants preferred small local businesses over supermarkets, and revealed built environment obstacles for elderly residents. They also highlighted how the socio-economic context constrained residents’ food choices.ConclusionsPeople’s experienced retail food environment is different from the one quantitatively analysed. Results show the potential of using a mixed-methods approach to enrich food environment research and enhance public health interventions.

scholarly journals Neighborhood Impact on Healthy Food Availability and Pricing in Food Stores

2010 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 315-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca A. Krukowski ◽  
Delia Smith West ◽  
Jean Harvey-Berino ◽  
T. Elaine Prewitt
Keyword(s):  
Food Availability ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
Food Stores ◽  
Healthy Food Availability

scholarly journals Healthy Food Availability Among Food Sources in Rural Maryland Counties

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 328-341 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A. Campbell ◽  
Myra J. Shapiro ◽  
Claire Welsh ◽  
Sara N. Bleich ◽  
Laura K. Cobb ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Availability ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
Healthy Food Availability

Abstract P304: Food Stores, Food Markets and Healthy Food Availability in Comparable Urban Neighborhoods in Madrid and Baltimore

Circulation ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 129 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Usama Bilal ◽  
Julia Diez ◽  
Carlos Martinez de la Serna ◽  
Manuel Franco
Keyword(s):  
Food Availability ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Food System ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
Grocery Stores ◽  
Food Markets ◽  
Food Stores ◽  
Public Markets ◽  
Healthy Food Availability ◽  
Prepared Food

Introduction: Neighborhood environments pose an adequate policy target for the development of interventions aimed at improving the cardiovascular health of their residents. Our objective was to assess the Food Stores, Food Markets and Healthy Food Availability in two comparable neighborhoods in a European (Madrid) and an American city (Baltimore), to shed light into possible food system interventions that would improve resident’s nutritional profile. Methods: We selected one neighborhood (~15000 pop) in each city based on the Median Neighborhood Index, a method that selects contiguous areas within a city that are less extreme in terms of education, aging, segregation and urban form. This method looks for clusters of non-extreme neighborhoods using the SaTSCAN statistic. For each neighborhood we directly collected information on the types of food stores present and the availability of healthy foods carried in side the stores. We classified stores into Public Markets, Supermarkets, Grocery Stores, Specialty Stores and Corner/Convenience/Gas Stations. We measured healthy food availability using a brief and modified version of the Nutrition Environment Measurement Survey in Stores (NEMS-S) developed by the Center for a Livable Future (Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health). This score ranges from 0 to 27. We performed a descriptive analysis of stores and public markets, mapping the amount of stores by categories and their healthy food availability. Results: The number of stores located in the neighborhood selected in Madrid was 41, with around 25 stores per 10000 residents. The number of stores in Baltimore was 19, with around 17 stores per 10000 residents. The main difference in terms of types of stores was between Madrid’s 12 Specialty Stores (mostly devoted to fruit/vegetable retailing) vs. 0 in the Baltimore area; and Baltimore’s 8 Convenience Stores, vs. Madrid’s 1. In terms of healthy food availability, this was similar across types of stores except for the Corner/Convenience/Gas Station category where Madrid had a mean healthy food availability of 13.2 vs. 9.3 in Baltimore. In terms of public markets, both areas had one market present, with very different characteristics. The Madrid’s market of “Las Ventas” is a three storied indoors market with 112 stands, mostly devoted to fruit/vegetable (n= (n=34), meat/dairy (n=38), and fish retailing (n=19), open all year-round 6 days a week. Only three stands served prepared food. Baltimore’s 32nd Street Farmers Market is a smaller market (50 stands total), open all year-wide once a week (Saturday mornings), mostly devoted to fruit/vegetable retailing (n=20), meat/dairy (n=9) and prepared food (n=10). Conclusions: This study compared two neighborhoods in Madrid and Baltimore portraying two different food systems highlighting major differences in the distribution of food stores and food availability.

A Rural Small Food Store Pilot Intervention Creates Trends Toward Improved Healthy Food Availability

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 259-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Anderson Steeves ◽  
Erin Penniston ◽  
Megan Rowan ◽  
Jeremy Steeves ◽  
Joel Gittelsohn
Keyword(s):  
Food Availability ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
Food Store ◽  
Healthy Food Availability ◽  
Pilot Intervention

scholarly journals Consumers' Perceptions of Healthy Food Availability in Online Food Delivery Applications (OFD Apps) and Its Association With Food Choices Among Public University Students in Malaysia

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisa Zhen Rong Eu ◽  
Mohd Jamil Sameeha
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Food Availability ◽  
Food Environment ◽  
Food Choice ◽  
Food Choices ◽  
Public University ◽  
Food Delivery ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
Healthy Food Availability ◽  
Significant Difference

This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted to study consumers' perceptions of healthy food availability in online food delivery applications (OFD apps) among public university students in Malaysia and its association with their food choices. A total of 290 subjects aged 19–29 years old were recruited from 20 public universities in Malaysia via snowball sampling. Data was collected through an online questionnaire which consisted of socio-demographic status, use of OFD apps (most frequently used brand, usage frequency, food choice, and expenditure per transaction), factors affecting food choice in OFD apps, consumers' perceptions of healthy food availability in OFD apps and recommendation for improvements. The most frequently used apps among the subjects was Food Panda (46.6%), however, majority of the subjects in this study (41.4%) rarely used OFD apps. Also, most of the subjects ordered unhealthy food (77.6%) and spent up to RM15–RM19 for each transaction (43.1%). There was no significant difference between the use of OFD apps and gender (p &gt; 0.05). Among the five food choice motives, “price and convenience” motive was the most influencing food choice factor in OFD apps. Majority of the subjects (76.9%) had a negative perception of healthy food availability (variety, price, and quality of healthy food) in OFD apps. No significant association was found between consumers' perceptions of healthy food availability in OFD apps and their food choices made in OFD apps among the subjects in this study (p &gt; 0.05). Also, majority (85.9%) responded they are keen to purchase healthy foods through OFD apps if they are given an option. However, most Malaysian public university students perceived that there were not much variety of healthy food, of good quality and affordable price, available in OFD apps. This finding suggests that the online food environment in Malaysia are perceived as unhealthy. Future studies can explore the online food environment particularly its impact on community health and well-being. Public health professionals and policymakers need to address the online food environment issues as part of the obesogenic food environment in Malaysia especially when OFD is one of the most convenient service in this country.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document