Neighbourhood fruit and vegetable availability and consumption: the role of small food stores in an urban environment

Abstract

Objective: Previous studies on the relationship of dietary intake to the neighbourhood food environment have focused on access to supermarkets, quantified by geographic distance or store concentration measures. However, in-store food availability may also be an important determinant, particularly for urban neighbourhoods with a greater concentration of small food stores. This study synthesises both types of information -store access and in-store availability -to determine their potential relationship to fruit and vegetable consumption. Design: Residents in four census tracts were surveyed in 2001 about their fruit and vegetable intake. Household distances to food stores in these and surrounding tracts were obtained using geographical information system mapping techniques. In-store fruit and vegetable availability was measured by linear shelf space. Multivariate linear regression models were used to measure the association of these neighbourhood availability measures with consumption. Setting: Four contiguous census tracts in central-city New Orleans. Subjects: A random sample of 102 households. Results: Greater fresh vegetable availability within 100 m of a residence was a positive predictor of vegetable intake; each additional metre of shelf space was associated with 0.35 servings per day of increased intake. Fresh fruit availability was not associated with intake, although having a small food store within this same distance was a marginal predictor of fruit consumption. Conclusions: The findings suggest the possible importance of small neighbourhood food stores and their fresh produce availability in affecting fruit and vegetable intake.

The Association between Obesity and Urban Food Environments

“…In a prior study that took place in a small geographic subsection of New Orleans, greater small food store and fresh vegetable availability was associated with higher vegetable intake. 30 However, in this study, which included the entire city, small food store access was not associated with weight status. The earlier study suggesting a possible dietary benefit of greater small food store access did not account for energy-dense snack foods which are abundantly stocked in such stores.…”

“…10 A number of studies have found correlations between the food environment and dietary intake. [30][31][32][33][34] One study in particular, using an experimental design, found that individuals who previously consumed few fruits and vegetables significantly increased their consumption after a new supermarket was built in their neighborhood. 35 These studies underscore the possibility that the association between supermarket access and obesity found in our analysis, as well as in earlier studies, may be predominately mediated by dietary consumption.…”

Perceived and objective measures of the food store environment and the association with weight and diet among low-income women in North Carolina

“…Widespread recognition of the relationship between the built environment, health status and food choices has led to growing interest in measuring aspects of the food store environment (8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15) . However, few studies have examined both subjective (16,17) and objective measures of the food store environment and their association with weight and diet quality (7,(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22) . Perceived and objective measures each provide unique data that, taken together, can elucidate important factors operating at both the individual and the neighbourhood level.…”

Associations between residential food environment and dietary patterns in urban-dwelling older adults: results from the VoisiNuAge study

“…However, compared with studies of children (15) and of general adult populations (16) , few quantitative studies (17,18) of older adults have specifically examined food consumption and its association with the food environment using objective indicators gleaned from a geographic information system (GIS) (19) . In US populations, evidence suggests that density and proximity to supermarkets (20)(21)(22)(23) and perceived or directly measured availability of healthy foods in these stores (23)(24)(25) are associated with dietary intake, but evidence from other industrialized countries is less consistent (26)(27)(28)(29) . Studies of neighbourhood exposure to fast foods and diet quality have similarly produced mixed results (20,(30)(31)(32) , but most such studies did not simultaneously examine exposure to both food stores and restaurants.…”