Food Deserts

In a time of abundance, some Americans are experiencing hunger and/or nutritional problems. These problems have been linked primarily to food deserts. Food deserts can lead to hunger by making it difficult for people to access grocery stores, physically and financially. Food deserts can also lead to nutritional problems as experts see a rise in the amount of food being consumed at fast food restaurants.

The availability of grocery stores and the inability to access them for various reasons has caused food deserts to appear across America. A food desert refers to an area with minimal access to foods needed to maintain healthy diet. However, fast food restaurants are typically prominent in these districts. What is creating these food deserts? There are multiple reasons for these food deserts. One is the actual physical access to grocery stores. Some people do not have means of transportation to grocery stores that are further away than desired. Some people only have access to public transportation and do not feel comfortable taking their groceries on the bus, subway, or in a taxi. On a more personal note, I had a good friend back in my hometown who I worked with at a local grocery store. He had no means of transportation and he found it difficult to purchase groceries and carry them home. He experienced nutrition problems to say the least. Food deserts cannot only be created by physical access, but by financial access as well. Government assistance programs are designed to help low income families, but they have limited funds. Many grocery stores are located in places where the most money can be made. This concept often limits lower income families to a few possible supermarkets. This drives people to consume food from other sources such as fast food restaurants and small convenient stores. Food deserts then arise in areas like this and contribute greatly to nutritional problems. Americans have seen a spike in fast food consumption. These meals are typically unhealthy and lacking significant nutrition, as I have experienced firsthand by tracking my food consumption with the help of a food journal. The existence of these food deserts has greatly contributed to the hunger and nutritional problems in America’s time of abundance (from lecture slides).

Another possible source of hunger and nutritional problems can be seen on college campuses across America. Most students have no voice in what food is served at their university. Many college campuses offer minimal healthy alternatives to students. Students are making unhealthy food choices, which leads to nutritional problems. Many students also have little financial access to more nutritional foods. For example, consider the price of a watermelon compared to the price of a package of ramen noodles. The choice of many college students are the ramen noodles because they are cheaper and fit into the budget well. These unhealthy decisions lead to nutritional problems especially among college students (from Cafeteria Consciousness).