Obesity and certain nutritional deficiencies are global health problems that emerge in systems of interdependent individual biological and historical factors and social environmental determinants of health. Nutrition security is a framework that assumes stable access to sufficient innocuous and nutritious food (i.e., food security), health care, and sanitation, and information that in conjunction allows self-care-oriented behavior for health protection. To understand the social environment of nutrition insecurity, the object of study was the food distribution and consumption system of a marginalized community in Hermosillo, Mexico. We assessed the distribution of food establishments by social marginalization level in basic geo-statistical areas and the nutrition security status of women in underserved neighborhoods. We found that in Hermosillo >90% of food establishments included for analysis (grocery stores, supermarkets, convenience stores, and beer deposits) were distributed outside of areas with high levels of social marginalization. The nutrition security assessment suggests that low intakes of fruit and vegetables and high intakes of fat and sugar may be associated with food accessibility and acceptability factors in individual decision-making processes. Future research should take into account the variability of food system environments and address the particular needs of communities in terms of food and nutrition security.
Keywords: diet; food system; measurement; obesity; public health; underserved populations.