With 45 fast food restaurants – about 2 per square mile – Bethlehem residents have no shortage of greasy French fries, crispy chicken sandwiches, and other cheap but unhealthy food options.

This accessibility contributes to health inequalitybecause low-income individuals and families in Bethlehem are more likely to purchase fast food and the consumption of fast food is inextricably linked to numerous health complications.

Eric Ruth, Co-Chairman of the Lehigh Valley Food Policy Council — a team working to improve food supplies in Bethlehem — said the lack of nutritious alternatives to processed foods is a systemic problem for everyone, but even more so for low-income communities.

“When you add in the social determinants of health – where you can’t get nutritious food in your neighborhood or where you can’t afford it – the problem is compounded for people with fewer financial resources,” Ruth said.

According to 2022 data from the US Census Bureau, there were an estimated 18.3% of people living in poverty in Bethlehem compared to 12.6% by people across the country.

Lehigh Health Professor Carly Camplain said fast-food restaurants are more likely to be found in poorer areas than wealthier ones. She said the ease and convenience of these dining options has a negative impact on health and well-being.

Keri Lasky, a nutritionist at Lehigh University, said: Regular consumption of fast food over a long period of time can lead to chronic diseases and after CDC“Diets high in saturated fats, trans fats and cholesterol are associated with heart disease and related conditions such as atherosclerosis” – a buildup of plaque in and on the walls of arteries.

Although it is possible to make “healthier” choices in fast food restaurants, Lasky said people at these establishments typically eat without considering nutritional balance. She said fast food is often lacking in micronutrients and high in calories, and contains ingredients – including salt, sugar and unhealthy fats – that are harmful to health if consumed in excess.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in Bethlehem, according to the city Public Health Care Needs Analysis 2022.

Heart disease is also the leading cause of death in the country, and “​​“The high-income group is the only income group in which the number of deaths from this disease has decreased,” after World Health Organization.

The city’s assessment suggests that nutrition Decisions are influenced by both personal choices and socioeconomic constraints, including access to healthy food stores, supply chain issues, and income.

To combat the health disparities faced by Bethlehem residents and address the dangers of overconsumption of processed foods, the city is working with several partners to develop culturally relevant nutrition and lifestyle education programs and provide funds to purchase nutrient-dense foods.

From this assessment, Bethlehem officials chose Food insecurity And chronic illness as two main focuses for It is Community Health Improvement Plan.

In the plan, the Bethlehem Health Department defines food insecurity as “an economic and social condition at the household level with limited or uncertain access to adequate food” and chronic diseases as “conditions that last for a year or more and require ongoing medical treatment or limit activities of daily living, or both.”

The city created a Food Security Action Planwhich aims to reduce food insecurity and provide opportunities to explore healthy and nutritious local foods.

The city also developed a Action Plan for Chronic Diseases with the goals of “reducing the prevalence of obesity, diabetes, stress and heart disease by 10% by 2025” and “improving intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and fibre, as well as sleep and physical activity levels, by 10% by 2025”.

Sherri Penchishen, director of chronic disease programs at Bethlehem Health Department, said the department is trying to explain to the population the importance of Nutrition and physical activity. The office offers individual and group counseling on weight loss, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

Ruth is co-founder and CEO of Kellyn Foundationwith which the city has entered into a partnership for additional educational programs as part of the two action plans.

The foundation is one of many local organizations working to improve nutrition education in schools, increase access to healthy foods, and medically based lifestyle change programs.

Ruth said scientific research over the past 30 years has shown that a diet based primarily on whole foods can reduce eight of the 10 causes that kill most people.

“We are literally killing ourselves through the food we eat and some other lifestyle habits.“, said Ruth.

Based on this research, Ruth and his team are proud of their Healthy Neighborhood Immersion Initiative, which provides short- and long-term health benefits and cost savings to individuals and families.

Ruth said the city funds the foundation’s intervention programs and distributes vouchers to Bethlehem residents for the foundation’s market, which carries over 70 different items from fruits and vegetables to nuts and seeds.

The foundation meets with groups to educate them about the health benefits of limiting processed foods and replacing them with whole foods.

To achieve maximum benefit, nutrition education must be culturally relevant, said Camplain.

““Nutrition has historically been a white, upper-middle-class issue in the United States,” Camplain said. “We will make a huge difference if we make sure that education is culturally relevant and relevant to the people we deliver it to.”

According to the U.S. Census Bureau30.1% of Bethlehem’s residents are Hispanic or Latino.

Penchishen said the Bethlehem Health Bureau recognizes this and is committed to implementing culturally appropriate nutrition education and working with local Spanish supermarkets and Ideal Food Basket to ensure people in the community have access to healthy recipes and nutritious foods from their culture.

Ruth said it is important to tailor nutrition education to each group, and the Kellyn Foundation teaches individuals how to adapt their favorite cultural recipes into healthy versions.

They have served over 700 families in South Bethlehem alone, Ruth said, and they teach at all 16 elementary schools in the Bethlehem School District.

He said that in addition to nutrition classes, the Kellyn Foundation also plants gardens and teaches cooking to groups.

Penchishen said the department has also conducted cooking demonstrations and provided kits for preparing healthier foods in the past.

The aim is to implement the idea that preparing food directly from the farm to the kitchen is not only nutritionally healthier, but that you also “feel better” and that eating nutritious food contributes to an “improvement in the quality of life” in the long term.

In her opinion, getting people to go back to their roots of home cooking and try to avoid processed foods will be very beneficial to their health.

“It’s cheaper to buy seeds and grow the vegetables yourself, and it’s much more satisfying to eat the food you’ve grown yourself,” said Penchishen. “We hope to get people to benefit more from growing their own food because it’s a healthier option.”

Bethlehem is the home of the Community garden programwhere, according to the program’s website, “Monocacy Farms provides community garden plots for local residents who wish to plant and maintain their own vegetable gardens.”

While there are such gardens in Bethlehem, low-income communities often have limited options as affordable as fast food, Camplain said.

Camplain said one of the reasons for the abundance of fast food options and lack of alternatives is the structural barriers to health — including building codes and financial insecurity. She said these are things that cannot be solved with diet and lifestyle advice.

“Nutrition education is so important, but given all these structural barriers, all the education in the world doesn’t help everyone,” Camplain said. “It doesn’t help everyone if there aren’t readily accessible alternatives that cost about as much and are just as easy to obtain.”