1. Assessing the role of access and price on the consumption of fruits and vegetables across New York City using agent-based modeling
- Author
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Kerry Griffin, Bian Liu, Youfa Wang, Stella S. Yi, Yan Li, José A. Pagán, Kumbirai Madondo, Donglan Zhang, Janani R. Thapa, and Elisa M. Fisher
- Subjects
Male ,Systems Analysis ,Epidemiology ,030209 endocrinology & metabolism ,Model parameters ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Feeding behavior ,Residence Characteristics ,Surveys and Questionnaires ,Environmental health ,Vegetables ,Humans ,Medicine ,030212 general & internal medicine ,Consumption (economics) ,business.industry ,Commerce ,Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health ,food and beverages ,Censuses ,Feeding Behavior ,language.human_language ,Pricing strategies ,Fruit ,Fruits and vegetables ,Community health ,Food policy ,language ,Female ,New York City ,Neighborhood context ,business - Abstract
Most residents in New York City (NYC) do not consume sufficient fruits and vegetables every day. Difficulties with access and high prices of fruits and vegetables in some neighborhoods contribute to different consumption patterns across NYC neighborhoods. We developed an agent-based model (ABM) to predict dietary behaviors of individuals at the borough and neighborhood levels. Model parameters were estimated from the 2014 NYC Community Health Survey, United States Census data, and the literature. We simulated six hypothetical interventions designed to improve access and reduce the price of fruits and vegetables. We found that all interventions would lead to increases in fruit and vegetable consumption but the results vary substantially across boroughs and neighborhoods. For example, a 10% increase in the number of fruit/vegetable vendors combined with a 10% decrease in the prices of fruits and vegetables would lead to a median increase of 2.28% (range: 0.65%-4.92%) in the consumption of fruits and vegetables, depending on neighborhood. We also found that the impact of increasing the number of vendors on fruit/vegetable consumption is more pronounced in unhealthier local food environments while the impact of reducing prices on fruits/vegetable consumption is more pronounced in neighborhoods with low levels of education. An agent-based model of dietary behaviors that takes into account neighborhood context has the potential to inform how fruit/vegetable access and pricing strategies may specifically work in tandem to increase the consumption of fruits and vegetables at the local level.
- Published
- 2018
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