Exploring the Benefits of Healthy Food Near Me: A Community Perspective

1. Introduction

Improving access to healthy food in local communities is vital to improving the quality of life and health of individuals. However, understanding how communities perceive this access is crucial for the effective planning and implementation of solutions. Using photovoice methodologies, this study reveals community-derived insights about the influences of the community’s macro- and micro-environments on healthy eating 1. Consideration of the local community’s perceptions has important implications for effectively addressing such health issues.

Grocery Stores and Farmers’ Markets This systematic review of the literature defines and describes food deserts, in particular the health consequences of food deserts and their link to health disparities. The limited number of full-service grocery stores in low-income neighbourhoods is a major factor contributing to the limited availability of healthy food options for individuals in these areas. There are numerous gaps between what food options community members have, what food options community members want, and what shop owners offer. A series of community-driven solutions that can be considered to address these issues and increase access to healthy foods is proposed 2.

2. The Importance of Access to Healthy Food

Access to healthy food is an important factor for community health. Most low-income communities have very few access points for healthy food, forcing residents to choose more convenient options that tend to be less healthy. As a result, chronic nutrition-related conditions such as obesity and diabetes have been on the rise 3 Research shows a strong link between access to healthy food within a community and its residents’ health, eating habits, and economic well-being. Neighbourhoods with farmers’ markets or grocery stores are generally healthier environments and provide greater food variety and choice.

Having nearby access to healthy food options can be economically beneficial for both individuals and communities. Healthy, affordable food is almost always cheaper than prepared fast or junk food options. This small change in eating habits can lead to considerable savings on monthly grocery costs – an aspect of choice that is currently denied in most low-income neighbourhoods. A neighborhood’s food supply is just one part of a complex set of systems—education, community empowerment, transportation, safety, and the economy—that shape residents’ choices about how and what food they eat. Within this complex set of interrelated systems, access to healthy food is a powerful starting point for building healthier neighbourhoods.

2.1. Nutritional Benefits

Nutritious food supplies several nutritional advantages for everyone in the community. Food that is generally regarded as healthy and nutritious is thought of as “healthy food”. The undernourishment propensity of various specialists severely impacts lower social classes 4. A healthy diet is essential in preserving good health and well-being. Furthermore, it can protect against a variety of chronic noncommunicable diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease. The necessity of having nutritious food supplies accessible to everyone, especially in urban settings, is critical for public health. Improvements in urban planning, policy and law, innovations in social media and marketing, health campaigns, and economic or job-related problems are part of the larger issues that urban settings must tackle 5.

Accessibility to healthy food is one of the key pillars in ensuring social justice and equity in health; nevertheless, food deserts persist in urban settings linked with socioeconomic and racial characteristics. A community needs wide-ranging and comprehensive healthy food planning that can tackle local issues. A participatory approach where community members are engaged in the planning process is proposed. Food beacons, a local healthy food planners network in the community, are also proposed to ensure the community’s ownership and accountability in the planning process. Academics and researchers can interact with and assist healthy food planners and activists in communities in urgent need of planning.

2.2. Economic Impact

Access to healthy food options has direct implications on the economic and social wellbeing of a community 6. In times where households struggle with basic expenses such as mortgage or rent, paying the electric bill or buying groceries, higher-priced, calorie-dense foods enter the picture and are chosen over the nutritious options. High sodium, high sugar, and high-fat foods appear to be the accepted norm, adding further burden as they tend to escalate cases of preventable diseases (e.g. diet-related chronic disease, obesity), leading to $90 billion in healthcare costs every year 5. Affordable, healthy foods should be seen as community property and not as an individual responsibility, making it compatible with physical and social wellbeing and economic development. extension of healthy food options is vital and should be seen as an investment towards a brighter future where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive.

In a global perspective, the growing recognition of the link between human health, environmental sustainability, and the health of global economies and markets is prioritising healthy food options. Improved access to healthful food options would lessen preventable diseases and their costly and unnecessary burden on the nation’s health expenses. Since food access is a local issue, local governments and communities should act collectively and effortfully towards attaining the health and economic stability that healthy food options contribute to.

3. Challenges in Accessing Healthy Food

The concept of food deserts has been gaining more attention as people begin to shed light on the obstacles faced in obtaining healthy food. Food deserts refer to neighbourhoods where there is a lack of grocery stores with affordable and nutritious options 7. In many cases, particularly low income neighbourhoods in urban communities, corner stores and gas stations are among the few places to shop for food. These stores typically do not carry fruits and vegetables and often times prices for items are inflated. Some healthier options may be available to residents living in surrounding neighbourhoods with large grocery chains, but those living in food deserts may not have the resources, like cars, to get to these other neighbourhoods. This condition often leads to a vicious cycle of unhealthy habits; with a lack of healthy options readily available, consumers will rely on what is accessible and affordable. With the proliferation of fast food chains in low income neighbourhoods paired with individuals’ lack of transportation to get to more nutritious options, implementing a well-balanced diet is made that much more difficult 8.

Aside from the environmental barriers exposed in food deserts, like the location and types of stores, the financial situation of an individual can be its own barrier, preventing someone from obtaining healthy food. Although some grocery stores may have healthier items available at lower prices than fast food restaurants, that may still be out of range for families living in poverty. With a lack of access to fresh items, entire neighbourhoods become accustomed to a specific routine of unhealthy habits, and a stigma develops. Lower and middle class families must work more than one full-time job to make ends meet and access to food becomes a tertiary concern.

3.1. Food Deserts

Food deserts are defined as areas where supermarkets with healthy and affordable food are many miles away 7. In recognition of this fact, the U.S. Department of Agriculture defines food deserts as areas having the criteria of low-income and low-access, as indicated by Census tracts and location of food stores. There are many low-income individuals, but not all of them live in food deserts. Using the USDA criteria includes areas that might be served by independent grocers or food outlets, but have limited access to healthy food choices. The USDA food desert definition constricts the problem in that it neglects to consider food option characteristics, such as if food is nearly all convenience store processed non-food. This delimitation of who is affected by food deserts is necessary in this research because enhancing understanding of neighbourhood experiences would be beneficial to examine which area is underserved. A food desert, as it is commonly understood in public discourse, is an area of a city, town, or rural area where healthy food is not available to residents in the area 9. Food deserts are typically thought of as areas where residents are not able to buy vegetables, fruits, whole grains, low-fat dairy products, and other foods that are needed for a healthy diet. These areas are so limited in food options that they could be described as having a food swamp of fast foods, convenience store processed foods, and an overwhelming number of poor food choices.

3.2. Cost Barriers

The high price of healthy food was commonly mentioned as a major barrier that prevented healthier food choices. Often, participants recounted having to spend large amounts of time searching for food items that were within their budget only to find those items were of lesser quality than those products offered outside of their area and that these stores often did not have many healthy foods at all 6. Healthful items often were mentioned as being “higher-priced than junk food,” “too expensive,” and “if I had more money, I’d buy healthier food.” When asked about the price differences between healthy and junk food, one participant remarked that for “$1.69, I can get ten bags of chips or only one veggie tray.” Similar attitudes were described within the focus groups, whereby junk food was construed as “filling, low-priced, and cheap.”. Along with price issues, the cost of transportation and the fear of losing employment were also cited as barriers, wherein “by using the bus, you have to make purchases that are under forty pounds” and “if on the corner for too long, the job might fire me or the police would take my information.”

4. Community Initiatives and Solutions

Urban gardens, often referred to as community gardens, foodscapes, or urban agriculture, represent a growing local solution for improved access to foods in both rural and urban environments. The garden spaces themselves are typically managed and tended to by local community members. Many gardens offer produce to participants in need of healthy, affordable foods, or donate excess harvests to local food banks and churches in food deserts. Active participants benefit in a number of ways beyond simply having direct access to fresh produce. Community gardens often become platforms for sharing cultural knowledge about food, enabling connections among diverse groups of residents, and eliminating a sense of food helplessness 6. There are many studies suggesting that community gardens increase the intake of vegetables and fruits (F&V) among disadvantaged participants. In addition to fresh harvests and community assets, findings from focus groups suggest that food safety would be enhanced among food access approaches in Detroit through neighbourhood gardens. Participants voiced the desire to know the land on which their fruits, vegetables, and grains are grown, to develop trust and predictability in the production chain. Growing food on vacant lots would also provide a way to secure land against other potential uses and to model community control over assets in the neighbourhood. They are especially looking towards the initiative of school gardens to educate children on growing and preparing fresh foods because, although foodways impact the entire life course of residents, children’s patterns are often easier to change than those of adults with established behaviours.

Mobile markets operate as an innovative strategy to address food access barriers in underserved neighbourhoods. These markets, also known as mobile produce trucks or rolling farmers markets, are refrigerated vehicles essentially converted into grocery stores on wheels that sell fresh produce and other necessities at reasonable prices. Mobile markets can travel to food deserts, parks, schools, after school programmes, and workplaces. The significantly lower operating costs compared to brick-and-mortar stores allow these rolling markets to sell their products at the same prices or lower than those found in the neighbourhood grocery store. A local mobile market in Saint Paul, MN, has seen great success in increasing sales and use of EBT. In fact, mobile markets have been established in several cities across the United States, including Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, Seattle, Portland, Kansas City, San Antonio, and Baltimore, helping residents to access whole foods in communities that had none just a few years ago.

4.1. Urban Gardens

Urban gardens play a crucial role in promoting access to fresh and locally-grown produce by addressing food deserts in local neighbourhoods across the country. On a community level, urban gardens are increasingly being seen as a way to tackle the dual issues of easy access to fresh produce in an area populated with nearby fast food stores and liquor outlets 11. As a community initiative, gardens involve people of all ages and backgrounds and have been acknowledged by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention as part of a multi-pronged approach to tackle the obesity epidemic that includes affordable and healthy food options, education on healthy eating habits, easier access to quality produce, and stronger connections between food producers and communities. Neighbourhood urban gardens are practical responses to food deserts in an environment where the cost of gasoline prohibits frequent outlying trips to grocery stores and farmers’ markets for fresh produce 12.

4.2. Mobile Markets

As a response to the need for innovative solutions to food access issues in underserved communities, there are increasing efforts towards locally-led initiatives that have potential to transform food environments and underlying social determinants of health 13. Several organisations across the United States are creating weekly mobile markets to sell affordable, high-quality, fresh produce, dairy, eggs, and other healthy food staples in neighbourhoods without a full-service grocery store. Mobile markets vary in operation and scope (i.e., farm-based, nonprofit, or for-profit), but all aim to provide fresh, healthy food in low-income or otherwise underserved neighbourhoods through operated routes, typically buses or trucks, parked for a fixed time period. The underlying premise is to expand food access by overcoming transportation and food desert barriers, particularly in neighbourhoods with a lack of accessible, affordable, fresh food retailers and high numbers of convenience and liquor stores. Emerging findings indicate that mobile markets have promise in helping low-income customers increase fruit and vegetable consumption 14.

Mobile markets are also seen as a promising opportunity to boost low-income consumers’ purchasing power and ability to access fresh produce by accepting food assistance programmes. There are continual efforts to increase the number of markets accepting SNAP (formerly food stamps), with some also exploring the ability to provide matching funds through the Fresh Food Financing Initiative (FFFI). In recent years, several mobile markets have also provided expanded access to WIC (Women, Infants and Children) benefits. Initially viewed as grocery store alternatives, mobile markets are increasingly viewed as community-level tools to help transform the food environment. Building off the legacy of community gardens and growing interest in community food systems, many new mobile markets have an expansive view of their role in local food systems vis-à-vis economic development, food sovereignty and land access, farmer-to-consumer connections, and neighbourhood revitalisation. While awareness of the food environment’s role in shaping health has grown, new markets are raising questions about the root of poor dietary patterns in inner-city neighbourhoods and the responsibility of the food system, government, and non-profits to provide alternatives.

Also Read: Exploring Healthy Fast Food Options: A Comprehensive Guide

 

5. Conclusion: Exploring the Benefits of Healthy Food Near Me: A Community Perspective

The exploration of healthy food accessibility through a community perspective highlights the challenges faced by many individuals and families in obtaining affordable and nutritious food. The importance of community efforts in addressing this need is underscored, as they often utilise unique resources that larger groups may overlook. Community-developed solutions are able to accurately assess food issues and implement targeted campaigns to promote healthy eating habits.

Focus group participants from various backgrounds shared personal stories in which they either did or did not have easy access to healthy food within their neighbourhood. The challenges described generally fell into five categories: inadequate transportation, a lack of nearby grocery stores, the unavailability of healthy food options in local convenience stores, high prices of healthy foods, and health uncertainty caused by behavioural norms in the community. Using a community lens exposes the ramifications of these challenges. For instance, there may not be concern over food trucks or fried chicken establishments on every corner, as many individuals may not see these options as detrimental 1. In Short Hills, growing the community might be less of a priority, as the wealthy may seek to maintain their power and resources, and ignore the needs of the remaining population, much like those in Atlanta. Additionally, concern over multiple factors such as obesity rates, poverty levels, and school lunch weight might be perceived as moot or too broad by the community. The challenges presented are significant, but community-driven initiatives provide avenues for change.

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