Cities with the most dangerous diets
In some parts of the nation, Americans' meal options are surprisingly limited. Direct and indirect factors, including food availability but also income and education, can shape eating habits -- which vary regionally in overall healthfulness.
Based on data from Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, the U.S. Census Bureau, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 24/7 Wall St. created an index of six measures to evaluate the regional diets of large American cities. The New Orleans metro area has the least healthy overall diet among all areas reviewed.
According to Dan Witters, research director at Gallup, while there are a complex array of factors contributing to diet, low income is the best predictor of poor eating habits. Exceptionally small proportions of residents in all these metro areas told Gallup they had enough money to buy food in the previous 12 months.
All but one of the metro areas with the worst diets had poverty rates well above the nation's 15.9% rate.
Another major driver of unhealthy eating habits is the local paucity of fresh, healthy food that's within residents' budgets. In low-income "food deserts" like these, people rely on alternatives like fast food, which is often cheaper, Witters said. The USDA identified 50 communities in the New Orleans metro as food deserts.
24/7 Wall St.'s index score reflects:
• The percentage of residents who ate five servings of fruits and vegetables at least four days of the previous week, had easy access to healthy food, and could afford food (all from the 2013 Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index).
• The percentage of households relying on food stamps (Census Bureau data).
• Food desert and grocery store access (USDA data).
In addition to the six index components, we reviewed fast-food restaurants per 100,000 residents from the USDA, as well as health outcomes like obesity and diabetes rates from Gallup. All data are from the most recent period available.
Click here or on an image above to see the cities with the most dangerous diets.
A scarcity of accessible, healthy food isn't the only problem facing some communities. Visit 24/7 Wall St.'s website to see which cities are running out of something even more basic -- water:
