Factors Affecting Dietary Practices in a Mississippi African American Community

Abstract

This study examined the practices, personal motivation, and barriers of African American communities in Mississippi regarding their dietary practices. We selected the Metro Jackson Area comprised of Hinds, Madison and Rankin Counties because it is a combination of urban and rural communities. The sample consisted of 70 participants from seven sites. A total of seven focus groups responded to six questions to assess practices, personal motivation, and barriers to dietary practices: (1) Where in your community can you access fresh fruits and vegetables? (2) How many meals a day should a person eat? (3) What would you consider to be a healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner? (4) What would you consider to be a healthy snack? (5) What do you consider to be your motivations for eating healthy? (6) What do you consider to be your barriers to eating healthy? Each of the seven focus groups consisted of 6 to 12 participants and provided details of their dietary practices. The focus group interviews were digitally-recorded. The recorded interviews were transcribed. The majority of the participants stated that there is a limited availability of fresh fruits/vegetables in rural areas because of a shortage of grocery stores. When they do find fruits, they are priced very high and are unaffordable. Even though health conditions dictate food frequency and portion size, community members feel that individuals should eat three good balanced meals per day with snacks, and they should adhere to small portion sizes. While the desire to attain overall good health and eliminate associative risks for heart disease (e.g., diabetes, obesity) are personal motivations, the cost of food, transportation, age, and time required for food preparation were seen as barriers to healthy eating. Decisions regarding meal choice and meal frequency can have an impact on long-term health outcomes. Health promotion programs should become an integral part of academic- community collaborative agreements.

Association of Tree Nut Consumption with Cardiovascular Disease and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors and Health Outcomes in US Adults: NHANES 2011–2018

“…Health professionals, including registered dietitians, should advocate for the inclusion of tree nuts as part of an overall healthy dietary pattern through diet counseling and nutrition education programs. However, it is vital that health professionals are mindful of their clientele’s cultural eating patterns to mitigate challenges to the inclusion of nuts in their clientele’s daily diet [ 70 , 71 ]. Our study showed that usual tree nut intake was greatest among nonHispanic Blacks compared with other races and ethnicities.…”

Association of Food Deserts and Food Swamps With Obesity-Related Cancer Mortality in the US

“…Increased heathy eating has been associated with reduced risk of obesity and cancer incidence and mortality . One key barrier to healthy lifestyle access is residing in a food desert or food swamp . Food deserts are geographic regions where persons live more than 1.6 km (1 mile) from a supermarket and lack healthy food options.…”

“…[10][11][12][13][14][15] One key barrier to healthy lifestyle access is residing in a food desert or food swamp. 16 Food deserts are geographic regions where persons live more than 1.6 km (1 mile) from a supermarket and lack healthy food options. However, food swamps are unique in that these communities are more than 1.6 m (1 mile) from supermarkets and healthy food options and have more proinflammatory food options (eg, corner stores and fast-food restaurants) compared with fresh food options or no options.…”

Superwoman’s kryptonite: The superwoman schema and perceived barriers to weight management among U.S. Black women

“…(Jilcott Pitts et al, 2013;Powell-Wiley et al, 2013). Other social determinants include lower socioeconomic status, which interacts with psychosocial stress, weight stigma, dietary preferences, pressures to conform to food habits, acceptance of larger body size, and hair care practices that limit exercise have also been linked to overweight/obesity (Anekwe et al, 2020;Befort et al, 2008;Bertoni et al, 2011;Hall et al, 2015;Robinson et al, 2012;Thomas et al, 2013;White et al, 2017). Mental illnesses and their treatment may also be a barrier to achieving a healthy weight given their association with dysregulated eating and reduced metabolism (Cortese et al, 2016;Shrivastava and Johnston, 2010;Zimmerman and Wylie-Rosett, 2003).…”