Food access in formerly redlined neighborhoods tied to poor cardiometabolic health
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Key takeaways:
- People who lived in historically redlined neighborhoods were more likely to have cardiometabolic diseases.
- Steps must be taken to address the impact of structural racism on cardiometabolic health.
CHICAGO — People living in historically redlined neighborhoods with poor access to healthy foods were more likely to have type 2 diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart disease and obesity, researchers reported.
The findings were reported at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions.
“Food access serves as a significant pathway for the relationship between structural racism and four major CVDs,” Rebekah Walker, PhD, associate professor of medicine and division chief for the division of population health at University at Buffalo, told Healio. “This suggests that addressing food access at a neighborhood level may offer a way to mitigate some of the impact of structural racism on increased prevalence of diabetes, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease and obesity.”
Researchers analyzed census tract-level data to create an analytic dataset of 11,457 census tracts across 201 counties within 38 states. Researchers defined structural racism as historic residential redlining, using Home Owners' Loan Corporation residential security maps from the Mapping Inequality project. Scores ranged from 1 (best) to 4 (redlined). To define food access, researchers used the modified retail food environment index, calculated as the number of healthy food retailers divided by the number of healthy and less healthy food retailers per census tract. The prevalence of disease in each census tract was based on CDC PLACES data and included prevalence of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, CHD and obesity.
Across tracts, the mean prevalence of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, CHD and obesity was 11.8%, 31.8%, 6% and 31.8%, respectively.
Redlining was associated with higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, CHD and obesity (P for all < .001), as was lower food access (P for all < .001)
Additionally, redlining was also indirectly associated with type 2 diabetes, hypertension, CHD and obesity via food access (P < .001).
“While we know the important role diet plays in CV health, the role of the neighborhood-level food environment may not be as obvious,” Walker told Healio. “This study shows that it is not just food insecurity at an individual level, but food access at a neighborhood level that is important to consider. In addition, it shows that individuals living in neighborhoods which have historically been under-resourced may need additional supports to access healthy foods.”
Walker said testing interventions that reduce deterrents to healthy eating or improve social and economic resources to allow purchasing of healthy food could mitigate the impact of structural racism on heart and metabolic health.
For more information:
Rebekah Walker, PhD, can be reached at rbwalker@buffalo.edu.
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Walker R, et al. Abstract MDP440. Presented at: American Heart Association Scientific Sessions; Nov. 16-18, 2024; Chicago.
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