Food outlet use and proximity to home and work

Background: Greater access to large grocery stores and supermarkets has been associated with decreased dietary energy density and lower BMI. Access for individuals has most frequently been measured as the distance from home. However, particularly in rural areas, this may not be an accurate metric. The aim of this study was to determine if work and school locations, routes between home, work and school and in-store measures of food quality, cost and availability of healthy options influence store choice.

Methods: Parents of pre-kindergarten children in two West Virginia counties reported the food stores they shopped at most frequently over the past 12 months. Locations of frequented food stores, work and home were geocoded and mapped.  Respondent outlet use was classified as either close to home, close to work, on route or other based on proximity and street routes between the 2 destinations. A comprehensive audit of retail food outlets was previously conducted in the study counties and results from the Nutrition Environment Measures Survey for Stores (NEMS-S) were used to characterize outlets.

Results: Complete data were available for 102 families (n=154). Forty-three families (42.2%) reported shopping at locations categorized as close to home work or both, 13.8% on route and 45.1% other. Mean NEMS-S scores were highest for stores in the other category.

Conclusions: The food store closest to home or work or on route was not the most frequented for close to half of the study participants. Factors other than proximity likely influence store choice and food purchasing behavior.