Low Income Residents : The United States Department Of Agriculture

The primary effect of living in a food desert census tract is that residents tend to be vastly more food insecure than those who have easier access to grocery stores. Approximately 23 million Americans live in census tracts defined as food deserts. The United States Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as “a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life (USDA 2018).” Food desertification is a complex socioeconomic problem with no clear consensus regarding how to best tackle the several issues that may influence its existence. It can occur in both rural and urban settings, with each locale often facing its own logistical

Diverse groups in American society are often the most marginalized and therefore the most vulnerable to issues that undermine the fair and uncomplicated pursuit of health and wellbeing. One of those issues is the lack of access to affordable healthy food and, in many cases, the inaccessibility to food in general. Areas where affordable and healthy foods are largely unavailable are called food deserts and the members of the diverse groups that live in such areas or that have access to very little food at all often develop a sense of food insecurity. One of the groups that is increasingly impacted by food deserts and food insecurity is the nation’s elderly population which is, by most standards, defined as those individuals aged 65 and older. The following paper investigates this phenomenon by addressing the elderly population of Ada County, Idaho as representative of this diverse and often disenfranchised population. The paper investigates the issue of food deserts and food insecurity that threaten the health and wellbeing of the elderly in the context of the various elements of social determinants of health that contribute to their development and persistence. The paper also includes proposals for individual and population-based strategies to improve access to healthy and affordable food by this population as well as improve the health and wellbeing of its members.

The existence of food deserts is an issue of both public health and social justice (Schafft, Jensen and Hinrichs 153). Schafft et al. made this point with reference to the state of Pennsylvania. Utilizing data from Pennsylvania, Schafft et al. studied the relationship between residences in a food desert (whose definition was established through a proximity-based model utilizing distance from large grocery stores as a criterion) and found that schoolchildren living in food deserts were more likely to be both poor and obese. Schafft et al. utilized these findings to reach the conclusion that the

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).

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,

This overwhelming statistic contributes to the 17% of children that have obesity in the United States. More specifically in Texas, 19.1% of children are considered obese. Furthermore, Texas is tied for the rank of 11 for the highest obesity rates among the United States. Looking at the Brazos County every one in seven person is obese. This statistic accounts for the one half of the population is overweight or obese. In lower-income areas such as parts of the Brazos Valley, obesity rates tend to be higher compared to higher income areas. reveal to have higher obesity rates. This is because majority of low-income families have less access to healthy food and opportunity for physical activity. Lower income neighborhoods offer a higher accessibility to unhealthy food sources. In a study done on low-income areas of Los Angeles, it was shown that a greater number of fast-food restaurants congregate the low income areas of Los Angeles compared to the higher income areas of Los Angeles (Hilmers, et al., 2015). Results for similar studies done on the amount of convenience stores in certain areas show that “Low-income zip codes have 30% more conveniences stores” compared to middle-income zip codes (Hilmers, et al., 2015). Convenience stores tend to carry large amounts of snack food, a variety of beverages, and little produce. Low-income areas also reveal that the portion of recreational facilities in

Obesity rates in the US are rising due to food insecurity. One in six people in the U.S. are food insecure, while two-thirds of adults and one-third Americans are overweight or obese.14 Studies have found that wealthy districts have three times as many supermarkets compared to the poor.15 Kevin Conocannon of the USDA noted in an interview that people in poorer areas sometimes have narrower variety of food options.16 SNAP recipients face barriers to achieving nutritious diets due to lack of availability in their neighborhood. Healthy food often comes with higher costs, so most people with lower income result to eating foods with lower cost and higher calories. According to a 2009 report by the USDA, as many as 23.5 million Americans live more than one mile from a supermarket with limited access to a vehicle.17 Food Deserts are particularly prevalent in low-income communities.18

This paper studies the economic factors of food deserts in America. Determining aspects of food store locations, supply and demand, food pricing, income, and consumer preferences are discussed as some of the economic causes of food deserts. Ten articles are used to support this paper with unique standpoints on this topic. Subjects that these articles examine are consumer demand, healthful food pricing, business opportunity costs, effects of low income, heterogeneity and homogeneity of food choices, and the effects of low income. This paper should demonstrate that food deserts result from supply and demand, income, determinability of food market locations, and demand preferences.

A food desert is an area with low income that is mostly filled with unhealthy foods that can be found in fast food restaurants and local convenience stores. Since the area is already penurious or poverty stricken it causes healthy foods with the nutrients that the human body needs to be unavailable. People tend buy the foods that they can afford, which is usually the lower priced unhealthy foods. The foods they eat can be the source of being overweight which can lead to obesity or other health related diseases. It is stated in “Food deserts, Hunger, and Obesity” by Asha Brundage--Moore that in low income states they are not much grocery stores. This is what causes more of a correlation between poverty and obesity, the location plays a major role in the two. Food deserts can associate obesity with poverty due to the location’s

“Food deserts,” areas characterized by relatively poor access to healthy and affordable food, may contribute to social disparities in diet and diet-related health outcomes, such as cardiovascular disease and obesity (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). The term “food desert” reportedly originated in Scotland in the early 1990s and was used to describe poor access to an affordable and healthy diet (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). Although the term “food desert” can mean a literal absence of retail food in a defined area, studies of food deserts more commonly assess differential accessibility to healthy and affordable food between socioeconomically advantaged and disadvantaged areas. (Beaulac, Kristjansson, Cummins, 2009). In other words, food deserts can simultaneously be “food swamps,” areas consisting in a saturation of access to unhealthy food (e.g., fast-food, convenience stores) and nonfood (e.g., gas stations) venues, characterized by calorie-dense, high-sugar foods (Brown & Brewster, 2015). As such, people living in these areas are at a clear disadvantage to how they obtain food.

Research shows that government-sponsored programs aiming to expand access to healthy food options and reduce levels of obesity are ineffective. These policies emphasize accessibility in terms of location and proximity but fail to encourage consumption of healthy foods or reduce levels of obesity among low-income families (Copari, 2014). The analysis through policy lens illustrates the government's role and the inability to address the underlying causes of food deserts that result in the policies that disregard equity and focus on promoting equality. In this section, we discuss the government’s efforts to increase accessibility to healthy food options, the political implications of food desert policies, and the government’s efficacy to promote

The issues of obesity and food deserts are important, and many people have questions about these topics. What makes this important though? To dig even deeper, what are the significant factors of both topics? The answer to the most pressing subject of modern times will now be determined.

The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) atlas on food deserts shows that most food deserts in California are in highly rural (USDA, 2017). Northern California, the Mojave Desert, and the Imperial Valley all have a high prevalence of food deserts (USDA, 2017). A closer look at the map also shows a significant amount of food deserts in urban areas of highly populated cities. Large portions of neighborhoods in urban areas like Los Angeles, San Diego, and Sacramento are food deserts (USDA, 2017). In this section, we will discuss the socio-economic characteristics of the people living in both types of food

Food deserts are one of the main causes of obesity in lower income areas, and while initiatives are being created to solve this problem, more than just a few initiatives are needed to change the obesity issue.

Bringing Healthy Food to Underserved Areas. Washington: Poverty & Race Research Action Council, 2010. ProQuest. Web. 11 Nov. 2015.