title: Access to supermarkets and fruit and vegetable consumption.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We examined whether supermarket choice, conceptualized as a proxy for underlying personal factors, would better predict access to supermarkets and fruit and vegetable consumption than mere physical proximity.
  
  
  METHODS
  The Seattle Obesity Study geocoded respondents' home addresses and locations of their primary supermarkets. Primary supermarkets were stratified into low, medium, and high cost according to the market basket cost of 100 foods. Data on fruit and vegetable consumption were obtained during telephone surveys. Linear regressions examined associations between physical proximity to primary supermarkets, supermarket choice, and fruit and vegetable consumption. Descriptive analyses examined whether supermarket choice outweighed physical proximity among lower-income and vulnerable groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Only one third of the respondents shopped at their nearest supermarket for their primary food supply. Those who shopped at low-cost supermarkets were more likely to travel beyond their nearest supermarket. Fruit and vegetable consumption was not associated with physical distance but, with supermarket choice, after adjusting for covariates.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Mere physical distance may not be the most salient variable to reflect access to supermarkets, particularly among those who shop by car. Studies on food environments need to focus beyond neighborhood geographic boundaries to capture actual food shopping behaviors.
authors.affiliation: Anju Aggarwal and Adam Drewnowski are with the Center for Public Health Nutrition, School of Public Health, University of Washington, Seattle. Andrea J. Cook is with the Biostatistics Unit, Group Health Research Institute, Seattle, WA. Junfeng Jiao is with the Department of Urban Planning, Ball State University, Muncie, IN. Rebecca A. Seguin is with the Division of Nutritional Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. Anne Vernez Moudon and Philip M. Hurvitz are with the Department of Urban Design and Planning, College of Built Environments, University of Washington.
authors.forename: Anju
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Aggarwal
authors.forename: Andrea J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.forename: Junfeng
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jiao
authors.forename: Rebecca A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Seguin
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vernez Moudon
authors.forename: Philip M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Hurvitz
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Drewnowski
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D040343:Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; D002755:Choice Behavior; D005260:Female; D005523:Food Supply / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005638:Fruit; D040362:Geographic Information Systems; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011203:Poverty / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014675:Vegetables; D055815:Young Adult