Association of supermarket characteristics with the body mass index of their shoppers

Scott A Lear,Nadine Schuurman,Danijela Gasevic

doi:10.1186/1475-2891-12-117

Scott A Lear, Nadine Schuurman + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2891-12-117

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Abstract

BackgroundResearch on the built food environment and weight status has mostly focused on the presence/absence of food outlets while ignoring their internal features or where residents actually shop. We explored associations of distance travelled to supermarkets and supermarket characteristics with shoppers’ body mass index (BMI).MethodsShoppers (n=555) of five supermarkets situated in different income areas in the city were surveyed for food shopping habits, demographics, home postal code, height and weight. Associations of minimum distance to a supermarket (along road network, objectively measured using ArcGIS), its size, food variety and food basket price with shoppers’ BMI were investigated. The ‘food basket’ was defined as the mixture of several food items commonly consumed by residents and available in all supermarkets.ResultsSupermarkets ranged in total floor space (7500–135 000 square feet) and had similar varieties of fruits, vegetables and cereals. The majority of participants shopped at the surveyed supermarket more than once per week (mean range 1.2 ± 0.8 to 2.3 ± 2.1 times per week across the five supermarkets, p < 0.001), and identified it as their primary store for food (52% overall). Mean participant BMI of the five supermarkets ranged from 23.7 ± 4.3 kg/m2 to 27.1 ± 4.3 kg/m2 (p < 0.001). Median minimum distance from the shoppers’ residence to the supermarket they shopped at ranged from 0.96 (0.57, 2.31) km to 4.30 (2.83, 5.75) km (p < 0.001). A negative association was found between food basket price and BMI. There were no associations between BMI and minimum distance to the supermarket, or other supermarket characteristics. After adjusting for age, sex, dissemination area median individual income and car ownership, BMI of individuals who shopped at Store 1 and Store 2, the supermarkets with lowest price of the ‘food basket’, was 3.66 kg/m2 and 3.73 kg/m2 higher compared to their counterparts who shopped at the supermarket where the ‘food basket’ price was highest (p < 0.001).ConclusionsThe food basket price in supermarkets was inversely associated with BMI of their shoppers. Our results suggest that careful manipulation of food prices may be used as an intervention for decreasing BMI.

Highlights

At a fundamental level, obesity is predominantly the result of a positive caloric imbalance from more calories consumed than expended
The majority of participants shopped at the surveyed supermarket more than once per week, was the designated primary food shopper of their household and identified it as their primary store for food (52% overall)
body mass index (BMI) of individuals who shopped at Store 1 and Store 2, the supermarkets with lowest price of the ‘food basket’, was 3.66 kg/m2 and 3.73 kg/m2 higher compared to their counterparts who shopped at the supermarket where the ‘food basket’ price was highest (p < 0.001)

Summary

Introduction

Obesity is predominantly the result of a positive caloric imbalance from more calories consumed than expended. Given the recent and unabated rise in the prevalence of obesity [1], much research has been focused on identifying key determinants that may be acted upon for future prevention and intervention strategies. A number of studies have reported associations between a variety of BE features and indicators of obesity Most of these studies have focused on features of the environment that may act as either barriers or facilitators of physical activity (and predominantly walking) [5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13]. We explored associations of distance travelled to supermarkets and supermarket characteristics with shoppers’ body mass index (BMI)

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