Category Archives: Food Environment

Mapping Food Insecurity During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Posted on April 13, 2020 by Built Environment and Health

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, 11% of households and nearly 16% of families with children were food insecure. With schools closed and families out of work, food insecurity rates are expected to skyrocket in the coming months. During the crisis, … Continue reading →

Posted in Food Environment, Social Determinants, Socioeconomic status | Leave a comment

How did the unhealthy food environment evolve in New York City?

Posted on July 3, 2019 by Built Environment and Health

BEH collaborator Nico Berger and BEH member Gina Lovasi recently led a study on changes in the unhealthy retail food environment in New York City. The study found that the number of food outlets selling calorie-dense foods such as pizza … Continue reading →

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Neighborhood Conditions Influence the Ability of Diabetics to Control Their Blood Sugar

Posted on April 22, 2018 by Built Environment and Health

In collaboration with researchers from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene we recently published an article in the American Journal of Epidemiology showing that diabetics living in neighborhoods with more advantaged economic environments, greater walkability and … Continue reading →

Posted in Diabetes, Food Environment, Parks, Social Determinants, Socioeconomic status, Urban Design, Walkability | Leave a comment

Strategies to Refine Annual Business Establishment Data across More than Two Decades

Posted on October 1, 2015 by Built Environment and Health

Analyses of place and health have been largely cross-sectional, and new challenges are faced as we wrangle longitudinal geographic data.  Our group just published a manuscript detailing our work to clean and code data on all NYC metropolitan area businesses … Continue reading →

Posted in Economic Development, Food Environment, Methods | Leave a comment

Food Environment Impact: Fast Food vs. Bodegas

Posted on September 27, 2013 by Built Environment and Health

In urban areas such as New York City, many corner stores (“bodegas”) offer prepared or ready-to-eat food. In studies of the food environment, researchers usually consider bodegas as grocery stores, and compare them with large stores such as supermarkets. But … Continue reading →

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Food Environment and BMI in NYC

Posted on August 15, 2013 by Built Environment and Health

We have continued our work studying the food environment in NYC, developing measures that take a more ecosystem perspective on neighborhood food environments.  For each zip code, we measured the density of food outlets, the proportion of retail food outlets … Continue reading →

Posted in Adults, Food Environment | Leave a comment

Neighborhood Fast Food Restaurants, Economic Investment and Adolescent Obesity

Posted on June 30, 2013 by Built Environment and Health

Many researchers, public health officials and policy makers suggest that neighborhood characteristics may influence dietary and physical activity patterns and thus influence obesity risk.  Because of the evidence that fast food consumption is linked to obesity, researchers interested in neighborhood … Continue reading →

Posted in Childhood, Economic Development, FITNESSGRAM, Food Environment | Leave a comment

Restaurant Environment

Posted on August 21, 2012 by Built Environment and Health

We are working on analyses of the distribution of restaurants, pizza outlets and fast food outlets across New York City and whether neighborhood access to restaurants influences the eating patterns of New Yorkers.  Below are maps for this project showing … Continue reading →

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