Getting Healthy

 May Require Some Policy Changes

Do you have a supermarket in your neighborhood? If not, do you have access to reliable transportation to get to the supermarket? 

Clearly there is a correlation between eating healthy and having access to healthy fuels. In this country there is a large disparity between the wealthy and poor in accessing quality fuel for the body.

Researchers have measured geographic access to healthy foods in many different ways, and at nearly every imaginable scale: from national samples to detailed assessments of specific neighborhoods. Only one study has sought to calculate the extent of the problem nationally. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 2009 “food desert” study examined access to supermarkets and determined that 23.5 million people cannot access a supermarket within one mile of their home.

Access to quality foods is important and is a significant reason for poorer health outcomes in low income neighborhoods compared to areas with higher incomes. Poor people get less quality food due to a lack of access and in many low income neighborhoods with a supermarket the quality of the products provided is not the same as in high income neighborhoods. Anecdotally, I can tell you that the expiration dates for meats in particular are shorter in supermarkets in poorer neighborhoods. No studies have been done but I challenge you to compare the expiration dates in an affluent neighborhood’s supermarket and one in a low income neighborhood.

By race, it gets worse. Yes even with our food race raises its ugly head. Ever notice how, many older African Americans relay stories of eating food that we would never dream people ate. For instance my mom refers to eating chicken feet. Have you ever seen a chicken’s food? How many of those do you have to eat to equal the nutritional value of a chicken breast? This is not history folks; I have seen these in supermarkets in African American neighborhoods but never in a white one.

This has historical significance and began during slavery when what was not wanted due to its poor quality was given to the slaves. This acceptance and in some cases desire for culturally traditional foods of poor quality continues to this day. Here is a short list, fat back, ham hock, pig’s feet, and chitterlings which actually are a part of the pig’s waste system. If it was not for our history would anyone eat this? The slaves did because they had no choice but we do. We need to make better choices about what cultural traditions we carry forward.

Stores located in low-income and very low-income zip codes in Los Angeles and Sacramento are less likely to stock healthy foods than stores in higher-income areas. Three in 10 food stores in a high poverty, predominantly African American community in Los Angeles lacked fruits and vegetables while nearly all of the stores in a contrast area that was low poverty and predominantly white sold fresh produce.

What we do know is that, when give access to better choices, many people will choose the better fuel. This correlates to better health outcomes and reductions in heart disease, diabetes, high cholesterol and other chronic ailments that plague our communities. Adults with no supermarkets within a mile of their homes are 25 to 46 percent less likely to have a healthy diet than those with the most supermarkets near their homes, according to a study that used data from North Carolina, Baltimore, and New York City.

In this study, a healthy diet was defined using two different measures: the Alternate Healthy Eating Index, which measures consumption of foods related to low risk of chronic disease, and a measure looking at consumption of fats and processed meats.

African Americans living in a census tract with a supermarket are more likely to meet dietary guidelines for fruits and vegetables, and for every additional supermarket in a tract, produce consumption rose 32 percent. Among whites, each additional supermarket corresponded with an 11 percent increase in produce consumption.  This study used a large sample: 10,230 adults living in 208 urban, suburban, and rural census tracts in four states. Proximity to a supermarket is associated with increased fruit consumption among food stamp recipients.

So when given a viable option there is a difference in the health outcomes for families and communities. So there is some basis for New York’s and other communities wanting to limit the amount of sugary drinks in schools and communities alike. I am not a necessarily a proponent of this since it is a very small change and targets only one of many bad fuels marketed to us and our children. My thought is there needs to be a more expansive policy change and a redistribution of the supermarkets so access to better fuels is available to all.

This change in policy should not be limited to sugary beverages but should include but not be limited to:

·         Making certain low income communities have access to supermarkets.

·         Allowing empty plots to be used to grow fresh vegetables and fruits.

·         Limiting the number of convenience stores or requiring them to have better balance in the choices they provide.

·         Requiring supermarket chains to provide similar quality no matter the location.

·         Limiting the number of fast food chains in a census tract.

This will require a gargantuan effort since our politicians really do not want to take on the food industry in any capacity. They have already signed off on the policies that allow corporations to reduce the quality of our fuel and increase the profits in their pockets. I wonder how many of the people who profit from the slop they serve regularly eat the slop they serve. So we need to Get Up and Get Moving to demand better choices for ourselves and our children.

CHIT CHAT WON’T BURN FAT but it may motivate the politicians and other decision makers to make our health a priority. This is as much a threat to our community as the violence and drugs and if you have noticed no candidates in this election have mentioned those either. An effort to change what is available and marketed to our communities will require a great deal of energy from each of us. Will you join me in the healing process? Join the blog and follow along if you agree and want some better choices for yourself and your children.