The Georgia Tech study finds that people in food deserts, communities that have less access to grocery stores, eat foods that are 5-17 percent higher in fat, sugars and cholesterol.
Pork, mayo and biscuits versus bagels, cabbage and hummus. That's the stark difference in food choices between two groups of people in the northeastern United States.
The foods on the first list are more exclusive to the social media feeds of people living in northeastern food deserts, a term used by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to describe communities with limited access to grocery stores. The second list is more exclusive to deserts without food.
A new study from the Georgia Institute of Technology has tracked the food choices and nutritional profiles of people living in both types of communities across America. It featured three million geotagged posts on the social media platform where food is king: Instagram. The researchers found that food posted (and eaten) by people in food deserts is 5 to 17 percent higher in fat, cholesterol and sugars compared to that shared in food-free areas.
Munmun De Choudhury, assistant professor in Georgia Tech's School of Interactive Computing, led the study.
“The USDA identifies food deserts based on the availability of fresh food,” he said. “Instagram literally gives us a picture of what people in these communities are actually eating, allowing us to study them in a new way.”
The study identified the foods that are most exclusive to each community and in four other regions of the country.
The distribution by region is:
Southeast: bacon, potatoes and grits (food desserts) vs. vegetables, oranges and peaches (non-food desserts)
Midwest: hamburgers, hot dogs, and brisket vs. beans, spinach, and kale
Western: Pie, Beef, and Sausage vs. Quinoa, Apple, and Crab
Southwest: BBQ, Pork and Burritos vs. Tomatoes, Asparagus and Bananas
“Fruits and vegetables are the biggest difference,” De Choudhury said. “Forty-eight percent of posts by people in food-free deserts mention them. It's only 33 percent in food deserts.”
The research team used the USDA's database of nutritional values for nearly 9,000 foods to create a nutritional profile for both groups. The amount of calories did not differ significantly, but the levels of fats, cholesterol and sugars were much higher in food deserts, especially in the West and Southwest. The smallest differences between the two communities were in the southeast.
“This would seem counterintuitive at first because much of the south is labeled a food desert,” De Choudhury said. “But statistics show that Southerners generally eat high-calorie foods that are high in fat and cholesterol.”
One final note about food on Instagram: The meal photos most likely to be posted by both groups tend to be the staples of each region. Steak and coffee in the West. Lox and cheesecake in the East; okra and cookies in the South.
“It doesn't matter where you live,” De Choudhury said. “Everyone seems to be eating what their area is known for.”
The study, “Characterizing food choices, nutrition and language in food deserts through social media“, will be presented at ACM Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing on February 27-March 2 in San Francisco.
