Access to Healthy Foods Worse in Poor Areas
An analysis of 54 studies has confirmed that people who live in poorer neighborhoods in the United States are less likely to have easy access to supermarkets carrying a wide variety of fresh produce and other healthy foods. Studies were conducted between the year 1985 into 2008 and focused on food access according to neighborhoods in the United States. Income, race, and ethnicity plays a mojor role in accessibility to healthier foods. Studies found that minority and low-income individuals living near supermarkets have healthier diets than those who don't. One study found that fruit and vegetable consumption of African-Americans rose by a whopping 32% with every additional supermarket within the perimeter of where individuals lived while another study found reduced risk of obesity. Food store availability in neighborhoods also plays a major role in access to healthier foods. Studies have found that in predominately white neighborhoods there are twice as many chain supermarkets as compared to mostly black neighborhoods. In these predominately white neighborhoods supermarkets were found to have healthier foods like low fat dairy foods, fresh produce, high fiber breads, and lean meats.
Before reading this article I was partially aware of this issue. I knew that income, race, and ethnicity played a major role in access to healthy foods however, I was unaware of the studies that were presented in this article. I found many of the studies listed about to be very interesting. I was unaware that the placement of supermarkets could affect communities so drastically. I think it is interesting that healthy and better quality foods have been found in predominately white communites almost twice as often as supermarkets located in mostly black neighborhoods. This is just crazy. It seems like no matter which supermarket you have available in your area that the food quality should be offered at equal prices across the board. This however is definitly not the case here in the United States.
The article presented compelling evidence that this topic is important. Giving us studies that show accurate and reliable results leads us to believe that this issue needs to be addressed. One of the studies mentioned in the article found evidence that if supermarkets were located within the census tract of individuals that their fruit and vegetable consumption rose to over 30%! Imagine if we could do this for every American just buy building a supermarket within reach. There is however one issue related to this and that is people living in rural communities which tend to have worse access to supermarkets.
I believe that this issue of not having access to healthy foods impacts the public's health drastically. By not having access to supermarkets that sell fresh produce, low fat dairy foods, high fiber breads, and lean meats leads to an increase of eating unhealthy foods. Many of these communities have plenty of unhealthy fast food restaurants to pick from however they are lacking supermarkets that are filled with healthy nutritious foods. The main issue here is an increase in obesity rates and other chronic diseases among the United States population. These inequalities to access healthy foods affects us all in the long run. Just for some statistics check out the Center for Disease Control and Prevention on preventing obesity and chronic diseases through good nutrition and physical activity. http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/publications/factsheets/prevention/obesity.htm
By increasing access to healthy foods among populations that are lacking we can help reduce obesity and other chronic diseases in the United States. 
I think it is important for us to understand that this is an issue that people are dealing with day to day in the United States. To some this may not seem like it is a problem at all, when in fact access to healthy foods is a HUGE problem in this country. If more Americans take the time to realize that this is affecting our society then I believe that there is a chance that this issue can be reduced. The article discussed that other countries such as Canada and Australia, to name a few, have made supermarket availibility greater in lower-income areas which in turn has increased access to healthy foods in these communities.
Strategies for addressing access to healthy foods was discussed in this article. Strategies suggested were to encourage supermarkets to build in lower income neighborhoods by including financial incentives. The financial incentives mentioned were to help "conduct market feasibility studies, assistance with parking/transportation plans, and assistance with cleanup/assembly". To me this seems like it could be a reasonable way to get supermarkets to set up shop. I believe that there is a huge need for new policies and local actions in these communities in order to address the problem of access to healthier foods in lower income, rural, and minority communities.
I would love to research a bit more on the topic of access to healthier foods. I think that this article just touched on the need for better access to supermarkets when in fact I feel like this is only a part of the issue. I think it would be interesting to look into income a little bit more. Obviously that does play a huge role in whether or not you can afford to buy healthier foods however, I don't feel that this article discussed this in very much detail. I will definitly be researching this topic a bit more to help me better understand just what is causing this huge issue with access to healthy foods in poorer neighborhoods in the United States.
