Case Study: Healthy Bodegas Initiatives

As I walked into Wawa, I could confidently tell you where everything is because the layouts of every Wawa in New Jersey are almost identical. There is a wall of refrigerators filled with soda to the right as you walk in, a side of the store towards the back reserved for making sandwiches, endless shelves of junk food by the registers at the front entrance and the refrigerators filled with soda, and an open freezer area in the middle of the store with some “healthier” foods. The amount of people inside took me completely by surprise as I opened the door because there was a lack of cars parked in the parking lot. I personally felt like I was in a grocery store rather than a Wawa. What I first noticed was the demographic of the customers in the Wawa. Almost all of the people in the store were either hispanic or african american. With people suffering from poverty and a lack of cars in the parking lot, I realized that many of these people walked to the store probably because they didn’t have cars. As I browsed through each aisle I found that Wawa had a nice selection of milk, fresh bread, and cereals that anyone can afford. As I attempted to search the store for any food filled with quality nutrients that wasn’t a dairy or wheat, the number of options weren’t to thrilling. Wawa’s fresh fruit consisted of about 5 red apples, 3 bananas,

In the absence of grocery stores and farmers’ markets, bodegas and corner stores serve as the central food source in many low-income communities. Most of these shops are rife with packaged, processed fare like Twinkies, chips, and frozen dinners. Initiatives like the Healthy Corner Stores Network aim to diversify bodegas’ offerings. The network and its more than 600 members support plans to expand corner stores’ stock to include fresh fruits and

Individuals of higher income levels often have private insurance that allows them to see a physician on a regular basis. These individuals are able to prevent many diseases before they exacerbate. They often eat low fat diets or plant based diets. They are educated on their nutritional health and often make better choices when choosing the different types foods to eat. Due to their income, they can afford to eat healthy food and make healthy food choices. Even though these individuals may be predisposed to certain diseases, their diets prevent them from becoming prevalent in their lives. Due to the individual’s socioeconomic status they make enough money that they don’t stress about the necessities in life. These individuals live in areas such as Roswell, Johns Creek. Alpharetta, Buckhead, Kennesaw, and Stockbridge. Individuals of a poor economic status have limited access to healthcare. These individuals often have Medicaid, Medicare, or no health insurance at all. They often eat diets that are high in fat. Individuals of poor economic status aren’t often educated about eating healthy. They often eat unhealthy because it is too expensive to eat healthy. These individuals often receive government subsidiaries such as WIC and SNAP benefits for themselves and their children. There aren’t many healthy food stores if any at all in these neighborhoods. Stores such as Whole Foods, Sprout, and Trader Joe’s aren’t located in poverty stricken communities because the individuals can’t afford the prices. It is a disadvantage that the grocery chains in the neighborhood don’t offer the resident a healthier option. Individuals of poor economic status often fight chronic illnesses such as high blood pressure, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and often cancer. They often live sedentary lifestyles that contribute to these diseases. They eat diets that are high in red meats one that contributes to

According to countyhealthrankings.org, (2017), the percentage of adult obesity in Brooklyn alone is high, with 23%, compared to the entire NYC with 25%. From my observation of the community, about a quarter of the adult population are either obese or overweight. During my assessment of the community, I noticed that there are lots of fast food restaurants, Chinese take-out/eat-in, pizzerias, Burger kings, McDonalds, Footprints, Dunkin Donuts, Jamaican restaurants and food trucks situated on almost every block. To my amazement, people of all ages, both adults and youths are seen coming in and out of these amenities. I observed only two of the holistic food stores, and each one is surrounded by multiple unhealthy food restaurants and remotely distant from each other. According to countyhealthrankings.org, (2017), about 32% of children in the community are living in poverty and have an income inequality of 6.4% which supports their decision of poor food choices because healthy food choices are too expensive and unaffordable (usda.gov, 2017). Additionally, about 26% of the community residents are physically inactive, which is associated directly with their unhealthy lifestyle (countyhealthrankings.org, 2017), and it is emphasized by www.nih.gov, that people with inactive sedimentary lifestyle are likely to gain weight due to their inability to burn calories accumulated during meal consumption and lack of physical

Obesity is a problem in different areas throughout the world; obesity is a major problem in the United States of America. The food industry in the U.S. has changed. Food is cheaper and easier to access, but food is lower in quality and is massively produced (Kenner, 2008). Food is no longer as hard to come by as it once was and is not as expensive, but healthy food is more expensive and, most of the time, requires trips to the grocery store. In American society today, American are busy and have minimal time to exercise, cooking, or even go to the grocery store. The lower socioeconomic classes are notably affected as a result of individuals and families of lower socioeconomic classes often can’t afford healthy food from local grocery stores

Many areas in the United States contain an abundance of neighborhoods that function with little to no healthy food sources nearby because of the large number of people in poverty. With the fleeing number of locally owned grocery stores and convenient fast food restaurants sprouting in urban and rural areas, residents do not have an adequate quantity of fruits and vegetables readily available. The City of Baltimore defines a food desert as “an area where the distance to a supermarket is more than one quarter of a mile; the median household income is at or below 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Level; over 30 percent of households have no vehicle available; and the average Healthy Food Availability Index score [convenience stores, corner stores, and supermarkets] is low” (Food Deserts). Baltimore City today “ranks second among similarly sized cities for the number of low-income people living in food insecure areas” (Freishtat, 2014). Leaving eight percent of white Baltimoreans living in food deserts compared to the 35 percent of black Baltimoreans, and 30 percent of children living in food deserts in Baltimore alone (Buczynski, 2015).

A proponderance of statistics derived from scholarly sources corroborates the notion that minorities who have a low socioeconomic position or have an significantly low income suffers many atrocious health disparities this includes obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases thus projecting a direct correlation between the two variables. In addition, minorities, specifically African-Americans that live in low income neighborhoods have less access to fresh, healthy and organic foods. In particular, supermarkets are sparse in their area and sometimes is not within walking distance or within the vicinity of their homes. On the flipside, these neighborhoods have the highest levels of fast-food restaurants and convenient stores. These barriers

Individuals who live in low-income areas have to rely heavily on fast food and cheap food from convenience stores because it is the only food close and affordable to them. People in poor neighborhoods are, “Confronted with a high concentration of poor diet choices” and, “End up eating a less healthy diet” because, “Few markets” offer, “Fresh fruit and vegetables” (Cortright 1). Even if

There are more fast food places to go to than there are supermarkets and grocery stores. David himself writes," I guarantee you'll see one of our country's more than 13,000 Mcdonald's restaurants. Now, drive back up the block and try to find someplace to buy a grapefruit." David points out the unequal balance of fast foods compared to healthier options throughout the nation. An individual can easily walk down the street and buy fast foods, but if they want to purchase healthier foods at a supermarket they will need to go farther away from home. These "food deserts" cause individuals like David to purchase from fast food restaurants due to the lack of healthy alternatives. Fast food joints are everywhere, an individual can walk down the street and locate at least 2-3 locations, but when asked where are the grocery stores they are nowhere in sight. Considering, the fact that low income communities have the highest rate of obesity, the lack of healthier options contributes to the obesity

According to Aynsley-Green (2014), many federal laws and regulations have greater impacts on the United State food supply. “The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008”, which is also known as the 2008 U.S. Farm Bill, supports my proposed policy (Aynsley-Green, 2014). Through the U. S. Farm Bill, a lot of money is allocated to nutrition programs, which improve the health conditions of African American neighborhoods at large (Aynsley-Green, 2014). This program was designed to provide grants to farms, food hubs, and the food enterprises that process, distribute, or store locally or regionally produced food products (Aynsley-Green, 2014). Since the regulations governing commerce in the U.S locale are well understood by the investors within the United States, establishment and operations of such supermarkets can be done (Aynsley-Green, 2014). Moreover, this bill creates strides in supplying low-income Americans with improved access to healthy as well as locally produced foods (Aynsley-Green, 2014).

“For people to be healthy, personal behavior, safe conditions, and an environment that supports healthy choices must combine in complementary ways” (Brownell, Kersh, & Ludwig, 2010, p. 382). Humans respond to food accessibility and choices in their area. Sadly, in Wyandotte County there are numerous fast food restaurants, but limited healthy grocers. This is why we believe Wyandotte County needs to be more accommodating to their residents. If the county had more accessible healthy food choices it would make a tremendous impact on its inhabitants. Of course we know that personal responsibility is a big factor in making these nutritious choices, but how are residents supposed to make the right choice when they are not given the capacity too?

People live in some neighborhoods where the only place to buy groceries is a ‘mom and pop’ store that sells junk food. Literally, there are no fruits and vegetables. The exception are stores such as Nojaim, one of only a few on the south side of Syracuse—an area considered a ‘food desert.’ This market has been providing education on health and nutrition classes to residents, as well as partnering with St. Josephs hospital to provide free health monitoring and mentoring to those uninsured or unable to pay for

Not all aspects of the grocery store mislead customers, as they do promote healthier lifestyles free of harmful chemical additives and organic food options. The question now is, will there ever really be a “healthy” grocery store provided to Americans? Or, will there need to be a shift in the way our society thinks about food and our access to it? The answer is yes, to both. The American culture prides itself upon individualiam and competiveness, but, as can be seen, only harms the overall “health” of our society. Perhaps, a new era is upon us that ensures sustainability and equal opportunity for

If you were to go to a not so friendly neighborhood the store would most likely provide junk food and cheap food that is not healthy. Why? Because the owner of that store has to make money and in order to do that they have to sell cheap stuff that is not the best quality or healthy. They owners don’t think about their customers, they don’t care that they will get fat and die at an early age. The health care providers are increasing the price, making it impossible for people to pay. Ending in people having

There are a variety of universal lessons that the reader can master. Predominantly, Fast food has changed our nation, in a way that we want convenient, cheap, fast, and appetizing food without caring about the fat aspect. According to the author, "In 1970, Americans spent about $6 billion on fast food; in 2000, they spent more than $110 billion. Americans now spend more money on fast food than on higher education, personal computers, computer software, or new cars. They spend more on fast food than on movies, books, magazines, newspapers, videos, and recorded music—combined." This is an indication that our nation has developed into an inconsiderate nation that doesn't show apprehension towards all the health issues that consumers consider a minor part in our daily lives. Another lesson that is acquired is, "It's not how much you eat, it's what you eat." The author points out that, "At the moment, the nation’s roughly 200,000 fast food restaurants are not subject to any oversight by federal health