Ethnic Makeup Of Los Angeles

Food deserts are places where healthy foods are not produced nor sold. Unfortunately, Chicago is filled with food deserts. Approximately 600,000 people reside in areas that consist of food deserts (Gallagher, 2006). Nearly 200,000 of those people are children. These children do not have the opportunity for healthier options, which shows an increase in obesity rates (News One Staff, 2011). There are 77 Chicago communities and out of that 77, 23 are food deserts (Gallagher, 2006). Chicagoans-particularly the black communities- are forced to live off the accessible food that is near them. The food deserts are in Austin, North Lawndale, Armour Square, Near South Side, Fuller Park, Grand Boulevard, Washington Park, Woodlawn, West Lawn, Chicago Lawn, Englewood, Ashburn,

In the introduction to “The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Our National Eating Disorder,” author Michael Pollan argues that many American’s in today’s contemporary society have lost touch with where their food comes from and which foods actually are nutritious. We have become an unaware society and allowed our daily simple routine of eating healthy meals to become a complex mess of fear for being unhealthy. I feel that Pollan is making an effective argument in stating his beliefs and factual knowledge on the confused relationship our nation has with food by using factual knowledge and evidence to persuade the audience that he is credible.

(Love & Das, 2016, para. 7). However, Love and Das (2016) expound on the inefficiency of this solution by stating that it “does not bridge the gaps to healthy food” because of their inability to invest in the community and understand their needs (para 12). Using vivid language throughout the article, the authors make their point emotionally impactful by emphasizing that big-chain grocery stores “lur[ed…] to the hood” leave when they no longer profit from maintaining a store in these neighborhoods (Love & Das, 2016, para. 9). Rightfully criticizing the existing solution, the authors expose the superficiality and inefficient manner of only bringing in more stores into neighborhoods. Moreover, by criticizing the superficiality of the existing solution, the authors suggest that eliminating food deserts involves a more personal investment into the betterment of the community. Overall, Love and Das permit the readers to gain an emotional insight on the impact food deserts have on low-income populations and understand the limiting nutrition conditions by appealing to

In South Central, Los Angeles, there is a food epidemic taking place among the population. For miles and miles, the only easily attainable food source is fast food; causing the overconsumption of un-nutritious, greasy, and fattening food. This is the problem brought to the public’s attention by speaker Ron Finley in his Ted Talks speech, “A Guerilla Gardener in South Central L.A.” Finley explains how everywhere he looks in his native South Central, all he sees are fast food chains and Dialysis clinics opened due to the lack of nutritious food. Finley views the lack of a healthy food source as a serious problem, and brings up

For centuries, the United States has been seen as a food and food-product paradise; with a constant bombardment of daily specials, “two-for-one” deals, and never ending combo options oozing from every corner of the food-scape. For many Americans, over indulgence is a frequent occurrence-studies show more than 50% of adults say they eat out at least once a week (“58% Eat at A Restaurant”, 2013). Even in this scene of gluttony, the poverty stricken and systematically oppressed find themselves in food deserts across The States; that’s more than 45 million Americans without access to healthy, reasonably priced foodstuffs. Of this group of 45 million, the African American community holds the seat for the highest poverty rate among various racial and ethnic groups at an astounding 26.2% in 2014 (DeNavas-Walt, 2015).

There is a growing link between food insecurity and the increased prevalence of diabetes in the Latino community. Food insecurity has been shown in the literature to lead to increased diabetic prevalence among the Latino community. According to Fitzgerald et al, food insecurity is defined as “the limited ability to acquire nutritionally adequate and safe foods in socially acceptable ways.” (328) Food insecurity is seen in the form of skipping meals due to work and other obligations. Typically, Latinos have jobs that pay minimum wage and require more hours than a typical nine to five job. It is with these working conditions that lead to shorter lunch breaks and poor food choices. Fast food chains and cultural foods often

In both suburban and rural areas, public transportation is either unavailable or very limited, with grocery stores miles away from residents’ homes. In cases where public transportation is unavailable people are left with little to no options and must conform to the unhealthy foods due to convenience. If there is a McDonald’s on the corner of a street near you and a Burger King or KFC on the opposite street, it is pretty easy to assume that those will become a person with no transportation’s only options for food. They really do not have much of choice if the nearest grocery store is miles away and these fast food restaurants are within walking distance.

In Lisa Miller’s essay “Divided We eat,” she describes her usual morning breakfast that consists of fancy foods and claims that she is a food snob. She then goes into detail about what her neighbor's routine is like, and what Alexandra Ferguson’s morning routine is like. Food is typically a big issue for these families and the parents will usually spend hours thinking about how they will feed their families. Miller and Ferguson later discuss that some children don’t get enough eat, and some of these children are within five miles of them. Miller then tells us that seventeen percent of Americans are food insecure. The income gap has increased and now more Americans are becoming obese because of this.

All food should be available to all people. The concept of this is dwelled on in the article, “Food justice and Food retail in Los Angeles” by Mark Valliantos. Throughout the article, Valliantos maintains the notion that healthy food should be within everyone’s reach, yet inner cities are still suffering from shortages of fresh produce. To see this issue in action, Valliantos documented this reoccurring phenomenon in Los Angeles. The author gives a description of two areas within the city of Los Angeles, and how they are economically divided based on the amount of healthy produce one has at its disposal. He makes note of programs that already exist to help low income families receive healthy foods that they could not afford. He also

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

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).

Throughout the years in the United States, fast food has become the prominent diet of citizens. Many people do not realize the harmful effects of eating fast food on a daily basis. Many people in the United States are use to consuming foods that are processed with sugars and other chemicals, without being aware of eating a unhealthy diet can increase the risks of being obese ;as well as, having numerous health issues. Although people try their best to eat healthy and more productive they do not know what foods to eat or whether if it is healthy for them. In the articles “Don’t Blame the Eater by David Zincekino and “Escape from the Western Diet” by Michael Pollan. There were a number of similarities and differences in the details highlighted in these two articles.

People always wonder why the City of Angels is different from other cities. This paper will answer this question and explain the uniqueness that makes L.A., “L.A.” Los Angeles, since its birth as an embryonic city, has become one of the most diverse metropolises, offering to the public what no other city can. This paper will emphasize the relationship between the federal government and the western United States. It will also illustrate how capitalism has flourished because of the prevalent 19th century Laissez Faire ideology. It will describe how the free market prevailed and expanded Los Angeles outward, while cultivating new public institutions and private enterprises.

Many low income communities, dense of minorities and people of color, struggle to find fresh healthy produce readily available to them. These communities lack access to farmers’ markets, full service grocery stores, and other vendors of fresh healthy produce. Instead they are impacted with an abundance of cheap, high-fat, high-processed fast food restaurants. Without access to fresh healthy foods, a full nutritious diet is hard to achieve. The discrepancies within the food system are leading to harmful impacts on individuals’ health. These discrepancies have led to significantly higher rates of diabetes and complications amongst racial and ethnic minorities. Along with an increase surge of diabetics within marginalized groups, these groups are also faced with more diabetic related complications. For example, “African Americans have 2-4 times the rate of renal disease, blindness, amputations, and amputation-related mortality of non-Hispanic whites. Similarly, Latinos have higher rates of renal disease and retinopathy” (NCBI). The systematic oppression of marginalized groups within the food system has detrimental effects on the health of ethnic and racial minorities.

(2016) demonstrated that food hardship and obesity among low-income immigrants could be the effects of having less healthful dietary choices. Risk factors of obesity among adults is having food with low nutrient intake with a poor diet. In selecting healthy foods after migrating, people tend to face challenges such as language, food quality, food familiarization, or food exposure. Low-income housing context may have contributed to the increased risk for obesity. Similarly, Low-income housing setting exposes residents to display an environmental risk factors that influence obesity-related behaviors like poor access to healthy food and safety