A recent study conducted by Kelly M Bower et al., observed the intersection of neighborhood racial segregation and availability of supermarkets, grocery stores and convenience stores in the US. As previously discussed, age-adjusted prevalence of obesity is highest among non-white minority, and while reasons for this disparity are widespread, this paper suggests that one significant factor may be found in food availability. Large supermarkets have the widest variety of healthy foods at lower costs. Contrastingly, grocery and convenience stores are most often stocked with energy dense, processed, high fat, sugary and salty food, with each food type serving as a precursor for being overweight and obese. Racial neighborhood segregation appears to play an impact in food store availability, making access to healthy foods a struggle for those individuals (especially children) who live in these neighborhood. …show more content…
Racial residential segregation may be a product of neighborhoods concentrated in poverty, rather than an impact of race itself, and this speaks to a greater relationship between race and SES. This interaction between neighborhood racial composition and neighborhood SES often poses a challenge in health disparities research and demonstrates more deeply the interaction between both these concepts. As such, the study chose to examine the availability of supermarkets, grocery stores and convenience stores in the US based on neighborhood racial/ethnic composition and