Navigating the Urban Food Environment: Challenges and Resilience of Community-dwelling Older Adults

Munoz-Plaza, Corrine; Morland, Kimberly B.; Pierre, Jennifer; Spark, Arlene; Filomena, Susan; Noyes, Philip

doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2013.01.015

Cited by 44 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…For example, many participants made smaller but more frequent trips to deal with challenges transporting groceries home, a strategy that is consistent with previous findings. 15 Some reported having to previously travel much further, often by public transit, to enjoy a similar level of supermarket access or quality, also consistent with other studies. 12,15,16 For many, without the case supermarket, shopping would be worse: more complex, inconvenient, or costly (in time or other resources).…”

Section: Assist or Modulate Coping Strategysupporting

confidence: 83%

“…26 Anderson's socio-environmental construct appears relevant here. As in previous research, participants in this study valued the case supermarket for elements of physical and social civility [12][13][14][15][16][17] : it was clean, bright, and even Bsparkling;^it was safe and orderly, reliable, and well stocked; it accommodated the needs of the elderly; and it allowed customers to feel respected and well treated. All of these elements were drawn in contrast to experiences elsewhere; in neighborhoods where this type of food shopping is not the norm, there may be unique opportunities for intervention within these Bcosmopolitan canopies.Ĝ iven the vast complexity and likely stress associated with food shopping trips in low-income, low-mobility neighborhoods, we come to understand the new store as a possible support structure within individual coping strategies.…”

Section: Assist or Modulate Coping Strategymentioning

confidence: 72%

“…First, studies show how low-income shoppers adapt their grocery trips to a variety of constraints, including issues of time, transportation, physical ability, and income, as well as retailer characteristic factors such as sales or produce quality. [12][13][14][15][16] Social forces also affect where and how individuals shop; for instance, one study found that shoppers preferred stores they perceived to be safe and easily accessible but also where other shoppers shared similar racial and income characteristics and where they felt well treated by store staff. 12,17 Once within a store, shoppers also exhibit a wide range of individual agency, ranging from very active engagement (i.e., highly planned shopping) to passive (i.e., reactive to marketing), 13 and may choose less healthy options despite having nutritional knowledge, given a variety of immediate constraints.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Mixed-Method Assessment of a New Supermarket in a Food Desert: Contributions to Everyday Life and Health

Chrisinger

2016

J Urban Health

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Initiatives to build supermarkets in low-income areas with relatively poor access to large food retailers (Bfood deserts^) have been implemented at all levels of government, although evaluative studies have not found these projects to improve diet or weight status for shoppers. Though known to be influential, existing evaluations have neglected in-store social dynamics and shopper behaviors. Surveys and walking interviews were used with shoppers (n = 32) at a supermarket developed through the Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative in Philadelphia, PA. Key informant interviews with stakeholders in the supermarket's development and operations provided additional context to these shopper experiences. Data were collected in July and September 2014 and qualitatively analyzed in NVivo 10.0. Participants described how the retailer helped them adapt or cope with difficult shopping routines and how it presented a reliable high-quality option (in terms of cleanliness, orderliness, and social atmosphere) in contrast to other neighborhood retailers. Health concerns were also identified, especially among those managing chronic disease for themselves or a family member. These issues underscored multiple points of challenge required to adjust shopping and eating behavior. In-store supports that reflect these challenges are warranted to more fully address food deserts and reduce health disparities.

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Section: Assist or Modulate Coping Strategysupporting

confidence: 83%

Section: Assist or Modulate Coping Strategymentioning

confidence: 72%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Mixed-Method Assessment of a New Supermarket in a Food Desert: Contributions to Everyday Life and Health

Chrisinger

2016

J Urban Health

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“…Older people living alone have been recognised as more likely to lack the energy and motivation required to prepare and eat food and hence are also associated with poorer food choice and dietary intake . However, in our sample of healthy, independently living older people, there was a keen motivation to eat well and accept individual responsibility for engagement in health‐promoting behaviours and, further, to enhance current health and nutrition knowledge, regardless of personal living arrangement.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 77%

“…A primary challenge for health‐care professionals is to devise and deliver programmes that will support sound nutrition and better health outcomes into, and throughout, old age. This will require consideration of current dietary intakes and, further, identification of modifiable factors that influence food choice within this age group . At present, such information is limited, particularly with respect to the Australian context.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘While we can, we will’: Exploring food choice and dietary behaviour amongst independent older Australians

Host

McMahon

Walton

et al. 2016

Nutrition & Dietetics

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K. (2016). 'While we can, we will': exploring food choice and dietary behaviour amongst independent older Australians. Nutrition and Dietetics, 73 (5), 463-473. 'While we can, we will': exploring food choice and dietary behaviour amongst independent older Australians Abstract Aim Burgeoning proportions of populations aged over 65 years impose an increased financial burden upon governments for the provision of associated health and aged-care services. Strategies are therefore required to mitigate service demand through the preservation of good health and independence into old age. Nutrition has been acknowledged as a key factor for realisation of this goal. The objective of the present study was to investigate factors responsible for shaping food shopping, cooking and eating behaviours amongst healthy, independently living Australians aged 60 years and over. Methods Eighteen (5 male, 13 female) independently living residents sourced from three low-care Illawarra Retirement Trust (IRT) lifestyle residential facilities volunteered to take part in the present study. All participants were aged 60 years or more and in relatively good health. Semi-structured focus groups were implemented to explore factors influencing the selection, acquisition and preparation of food. Each session was digitally recorded, transcribed verbatim and subsequently examined using content and thematic analysis. Results Ten sub-themes were identified and grouped into three broader themes: adaptation, psychosocial parameters and food landscape. Findings reflect an active self-determination to retain independence, with a focus on the maintenance of favourable nutritional status. A sense of resourcefulness was evident through the development of strategies to overcome potential barriers to healthy eating. Conclusions Factors that influence the food choices of community-living older Australians are complex and multifactorial, and underpinned by a strong desire for independence and control over personal health outcomes. Studies involving larger, more demographically diverse participant groups are required to elicit socially acceptable strategies that will empower older Australians to sustain their health and independence for the longer term. Strategies are therefore required to mitigate service demand, through the preservation of 7 good health and independence into old age. Nutrition has been acknowledged as a key factor 8 for realisation of this goal. The objective of this study was to investigate factors responsible 9 for shaping food shopping, cooking and eating behaviours amongst healthy, independently-10 living Australians aged 60 years and over. 11Methods: Eighteen (five male, thirteen female) independently-living residents sourced from 3 12 Illawarra lifestyle residential facilities volunteered to take part in this study. All participants 13 were aged 60 years or more and in relatively good health. Semi-structured focus groups were 14 implemented to explore factors influencing the selection, acquisition and preparation of food. 15Each ses...

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FEAST: Empowering Community Residents to Use Technology to Assess and Advocate for Healthy Food Environments

et al. 2017

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Creating environments that support healthy eating is important for successful aging, particularly in light of the growing population of older adults in the United States. There is an urgent need to identify innovative upstream solutions to barriers experienced by older adults in accessing and buying healthy food. FEAST (Food Environment Assessment STudy) is an effort that is part of the global Our Voice initiative, which utilizes a combination of technology and community-engaged methods to empower citizen scientists (i.e., community residents) to: (1) use the Healthy Neighborhood Discovery Tool (Discovery Tool) mobile application to collect data (geocoded photos, audio narratives) about aspects of their environment that facilitate or hinder healthy living; and (2) use findings to advocate for change in partnership with local decision and policy makers. In FEAST, 23 racially/ethnically diverse, low-income, and food-insecure older adults residing in urban, North San Mateo County, CA, were recruited to use the Discovery Tool to examine factors that facilitated or hindered their access to food as well as their food-related behaviors. Participants collectively reviewed data retrieved from the Discovery Tool and identified and prioritized important, yet feasible, issues to address. Access to affordable healthy food and transportation were identified as the major barriers to eating healthfully and navigating their neighborhood food environments. Subsequently, participants were trained in advocacy skills and shared their findings with relevant decision and policymakers, who in turn dispelled myths and discussed and shared resources to address relevant community needs. Proximal and distal effects of the community-engaged process at 3, 6, 12, and 24 months were documented and revealed individual-, community-, and policy-level impacts. Finally, FEAST contributes to the evidence on multi-level challenges that low-income, racially/ethnically diverse older adults experience when accessing, choosing and buying healthy foods.

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Navigating the Urban Food Environment: Challenges and Resilience of Community-dwelling Older Adults

Cited by 44 publications

References 44 publications

A Mixed-Method Assessment of a New Supermarket in a Food Desert: Contributions to Everyday Life and Health

A Mixed-Method Assessment of a New Supermarket in a Food Desert: Contributions to Everyday Life and Health

‘While we can, we will’: Exploring food choice and dietary behaviour amongst independent older Australians

FEAST: Empowering Community Residents to Use Technology to Assess and Advocate for Healthy Food Environments

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