{"506101":{"#nid":"506101","#data":{"type":"news","title":"People in Food Deserts Eat Much Differently than the Rest of America","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EPork, mayonnaise and cookies versus bagels, kale and hummus. That\u2019s the glaring difference in food choices between two groups of people in the northeastern United States.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe foods on the first list are more exclusive in 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 non-food deserts.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA new study from the Georgia Institute of Technology has identified the food choices and nutritional profiles of people living in both types of communities throughout America. It included three million geo-tagged 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 those shared in non-food deserts areas.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMunmun De Choudhury, an assistant professor in Georgia Tech\u2019s School of Interactive Computing, led the study.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe USDA identifies food deserts based on the availability of fresh food,\u201d she said. \u201cInstagram literally gives us a picture of what people are actually eating in these communities, allowing us to study them in a new way.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe study identified the foods that are most exclusive to each community in four other regions of the country, as well. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe breakdown by region is:\u003Cbr \/\u003ESoutheast: bacon, potatoes and grits (food deserts) vs. collard greens, oranges and peaches (non-food deserts)\u003Cbr \/\u003EMidwest: hamburgers, hot dogs and brisket vs. beans, spinach and kale\u003Cbr \/\u003EWest: pie, beef and sausage vs. quinoa, apple and crab\u003Cbr \/\u003ESouthwest: barbeque, pork and burritos vs. tomatoes, asparagus and bananas\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cFruits and vegetables are the biggest difference,\u201d De Choudhury said. \u201cForty-eight percent of posts from people in non-food deserts mention them. It\u2019s only 33 percent in food deserts.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe research team used the USDA\u2019s database of nutritional values for nearly 9,000 foods to create a nutritional profile for both groups. The amount of calories didn\u2019t 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.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThat would seem counterintuitive at first because so much of the south is designated as a food desert,\u201d De Choudhury said. \u201cBut other statistics show that Southern people generally eat-high calorie food that is rich in fat and cholesterol.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne final note about food on Instagram: Pictures of meals that are 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 biscuits in the South.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter where you live,\u201d De Choudhury said. \u201cEveryone seems to eat what their region is known for.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe study, \u201c\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.munmund.net\/pubs\/cscw16_fooddeserts.pdf\u0022\u003ECharacterizing Dietary Choices, Nutrition, and Language in Food Deserts via Social Media\u003C\/a\u003E,\u201d will be presented at the \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/gvu.gatech.edu\/cscw-2016\u0022\u003EACM Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing\u003C\/a\u003E on February 27-March 2 in San Francisco.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Social media reveals nutritional choices of people with fewer fresh food options"}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EA new study has identified the food choices and nutritional profiles of people living in food deserts throughout America, and compared them with people who have easier access to grocery stores. 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 those shared in non-food deserts areas.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"A social media study uncovers what people eat, depending on their proximity to grocery stores."}],"uid":"27560","created_gmt":"2016-02-25 09:38:37","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:20:53","author":"Jason Maderer","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2016-02-25T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2016-02-25T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"506111":{"id":"506111","type":"image","title":"Healthy vs. Unhealthy","body":null,"created":"1456765200","gmt_created":"2016-02-29 17:00:00","changed":"1475895265","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:54:25","alt":"Healthy vs. Unhealthy","file":{"fid":"204842","name":"healthy_and_unhealthy_food.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/healthy_and_unhealthy_food_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/healthy_and_unhealthy_food_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":361552,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/healthy_and_unhealthy_food_0.jpg?itok=7Lu0yWwW"}},"485901":{"id":"485901","type":"image","title":"Munmun De Choudhury 2015","body":null,"created":"1452902401","gmt_created":"2016-01-16 00:00:01","changed":"1475895239","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:53:59","alt":"Munmun De Choudhury 2015","file":{"fid":"204318","name":"munmun_dechoudhury.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/munmun_dechoudhury_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/munmun_dechoudhury_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":567566,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/munmun_dechoudhury_0.jpg?itok=LoWSaWm7"}}},"media_ids":["506111","485901"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.munmund.net\/pubs\/cscw16_fooddeserts.pdf","title":"Read the study"},{"url":"http:\/\/gvu.gatech.edu\/cscw-2016","title":"More Georgia Tech Research at CSCW"}],"groups":[{"id":"1183","name":"Home"}],"categories":[{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"116","name":"food"},{"id":"166957","name":"Food Deserts"},{"id":"398","name":"health"},{"id":"89321","name":"Munmun De Choudhury"},{"id":"166848","name":"School of Interactive Computing"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39501","name":"People and Technology"}],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71891","name":"Health and Medicine"},{"id":"71881","name":"Science and Technology"},{"id":"71901","name":"Society and Culture"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EJason Maderer\u003Cbr \/\u003ENational Media Relations\u003Cbr \/\u003E404-660-2926\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:maderer@gatech.edu\u0022\u003Emaderer@gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["maderer@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}