Standing in the Shadows of Obesity: The Local Food Environment and Obesity in Detroit

Abstract

Much of the literature examining associations between local food environments and obesity fail to consider whether or not respondents actually utilise the food stores around them. Drawing on survey data, this study examines the relationships between the neighbourhood food environment, mobility and obesity among residents from the lower eastside neighbourhoods of Detroit, Michigan. Certain dimensions of the local food environment are found to contribute to obesity, but these dimensions occur at different scales. Residents who rely on their immediate neighbourhood food environment have a higher likelihood of being obese than residents who do not utilise the stores around them. At a broader level, lower eastside Detroit residents with a greater concentration of fast food establishments around them have a higher possibility of being obese than residents with fewer fast food restaurants around them. The salience of the fast food environment warrants additional attention in terms of public health interventions.

Food insecurity in Detroit: exploring the relationship between patient-reported food insecurity and proximity to healthful grocery stores

“…visiting multiple stores to get the best deals and maximise their food dollars) (46)(47)(48) and how household dynamics (e.g. nutritional knowledge) (35) influence respondents' interactions with food sources.…”

“…economic access, capacity to cope with risk, food provision, etc.) (34) that should be accounted for whilst attempting to understand food insecurity (35)(36)(37) . Some literature (36,38) has shown that individuals routinely conduct day-to-day activities (e.g.…”

“…In addition, studies have found that most low-income individuals, including food insecure individuals, travel outside of their neighbourhoods to shop (30,39) . It is essential for studies to investigate where people shop, with or for whom, and why, rather than assuming individuals choose to minimise distance in their shopping preferences (35,40) . Detroiters that identify as food insecure may be living in a what has been coined in the literature as a 'food mirage' rather than a 'food desert' (41) .…”

High school students’ friendship network, physical activity and residential locations – a stochastic actor based model

“…Among many factors that are associated with obesity and PA, the built environment is an important one. Since the 1990s, scholars have been investigating the association between public health outcomes, in particular obesity, and the low-density, automobile-dependent urban form in the U.S., and in particular, the influence of built environment on PA (Ledoux et al, 2016). Studies revealed that a pedestrian and bicycle-friendly built environment, which is characterized by high population and housing density, mixed land uses, and highly connected road network, promotes people's PA (Handy et al, 2002).…”

The dynamics of food shopping behavior: Exploring travel patterns in low-income Detroit neighborhoods experiencing extreme disinvestment using agent-based modeling

“…Particular vulnerabilities have been recognized among poor, minority populations living within cities, who are faced with limited access to culturally appropriate and nutritious food within their neighborhoods. Due to their low incomes, these population subgroups also tend to have more restricted mobility [5][6][7][8][9][10]. Their travel constraints are not only shaped by the limited private automobile ownership among lower-income households, but also due to the more inadequate public transit access in cities experiencing disinvestment and decline.…”