Characterizing Food Policy Councils' Network Partnerships and COVID-19 Responses.

The COVID-19 pandemic pushed millions of Americans into food insecurity. Food policy councils (FPCs) across the country played a vital role in organizing coordinated food responses across multiple sectors. We used a social network analysis (SNA) approach to investigate: (1) the network of partnering organizations and agencies within FPCs; (2) how the characteristics of FPCs' network partnerships (i.e., degree, coreness, and density) related to programmatic, policy, and advocacy actions in response to the pandemic; and (3) how FPCs' use of a racial or social equity framework shifted their network partnerships and responses. Local government agencies and food supply chain actors were core in FPCs' network partnerships, while public utilities, correctional facilities, social justice groups, and others were non-core partners. Network density was more likely to be associated with any action by FPCs, and it was especially pronounced for advocacy actions taken by FPCs; trends were similar among FPCs that reported using a racial or social equity framework. The findings begin to uncover core actors in FPCs' partnerships and opportunities to establish new partnerships, particularly with social justice groups. The results also suggest that network density (interconnectedness) may be more important than other network characteristics when responding to food-related needs.

Evaluating a Washington DC Community-based meal-kit service aimed at mitigating dietary disparities: Results from the SouthEats pilot study.

Background: Vegetable consumption is known to reduce the risk of various chronic health conditions. Yet a small percentage of US adults consume enough vegetables to meet national dietary guidelines. The SouthEats community-led meal-kit service was developed in Washington DC to address known barriers to healthy eating and vegetable consumption among middle- and low-income households. Methods: Using a series of online surveys, we conducted a pilot study to provide preliminary information on the influence of SouthEats on vegetable consumption and factors known to influence vegetable consumption. Wilcoxon matched-pair sign ranked tests were used to examine changes in key outcomes between baseline, midpoint and endpoint surveys. Results: Among SouthEats customers who completed all pilot study surveys (n = 23) there was a significant decrease in the median amount of time spent on meal prep between baseline and midpoint. Between baseline and endpoint, participants also indicated increased feelings that they had enough time to meet their needs including cooking healthfully. Overall vegetable and fruit and vegetable consumption increased between the baseline and midpoint but then decreased between the midpoint and endpoint survey periods. However, there were no statistically significant changes in the outcomes of home eating behaviors, perceptions of neighborhood healthy food access, vegetable self-efficacy, or vegetable consumption. Conclusion: Our results provide some preliminary evidence suggesting that the SouthEats meal-kit service could help reduce the amount of time spent on cooking, reduce feelings of time scarcity, and increase vegetable consumption in the short-term. Further research exploring this topic will require a larger study sample.

Acquisition, mobility and food insecurity: integrated food systems opportunities across urbanicity levels highlighted by COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate acquisition and mobility experiences of food-insecure individuals across urbanicity levels (i.e., urban, suburban, rural) in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study using a nationally representative online panel to measure where food-insecure individuals acquired food, food acquisition barriers and mobility to food sources, which were evaluated across urbanicity levels using chi-squared tests and 95 % CI. SETTING: USA. PARTICIPANTS: 2011 adults (18 years or older). RESULTS: Food insecurity impacted 62·3 % of adults in urban areas, 40·5 % in rural areas and 36·7 % in suburban areas (P < 0·001). Food acquisition barriers that were significantly more prevalent among food-insecure adults in urban areas were a change in employment status (34·2 %; 95 % CI 27·2 %, 41·1 %; P < 0·0001) and limited availability of food in retailers (38·8 %; 95 % CI 31·7 %, 45·9 %; P < 0·001). In rural areas, food-insecure adults primarily acquired food for the household from supercentres (61·5 %; 95 % CI 50·4 %, 72·5 %; P < 0·05), while locally sourced foods were less common among food-insecure adults in rural areas (6·9 %; 95 % CI 0·01 %, 13·0 %) compared to urban areas (19·8 %; 95 % CI 14·3 %, 25·4 %; P < 0·01). Transportation as a barrier did not vary significantly by urbanicity, but food-insecure adults across urbanicity levels reported utilising a range of transportation modes to acquire food. CONCLUSIONS: A planning approach that links urban and rural areas could address food insecurity by enhancing the integration of food production, transportation and food distribution, building towards a more resilient and equitable food system for all Americans.

Associations between Food Policy Councils and Policies That Support Healthy Food Access: A National Survey of Community Policy Supports.

Food policy councils (FPCs) are one form of community coalition that aims to address challenges to local food systems and enhance availability, accessibility, and affordability of healthy foods for local residents. We used data from the 2014 National Survey of Community-Based Policy and Environmental Supports for Healthy Eating and Active Living, a nationally representative survey of US municipalities (n = 2029), to examine the prevalence of FPCs and cross-sectional associations between FPCs and four types of supports for healthy food access (approaches to help food stores, practices to support farmers markets, transportation-related supports, and community planning documents). Overall, 7.7% of municipalities reported having a local or regional FPC. FPCs were more commonly reported among larger municipalities with ≥50,000 people (29.2%, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 21.6, 36.8) and western region municipalities (13.2%, 95% CI: 9.6, 16.8). After multivariable adjustment, municipalities with FPCs had significantly higher odds of having all four types of supports, compared to those without FPCs (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) range: 2.4-3.4). Among municipalities with FPCs (n = 156), 41% reported having a local government employee or elected official as a member, and 46% had a designated health or public health representative. Although FPCs were uncommon, municipalities that reported having a local or regional FPC were more likely to report having supports for healthy food access for their residents.

Associations between Governmental Policies to Improve the Nutritional Quality of Supermarket Purchases and Individual, Retailer, and Community Health Outcomes: An Integrative Review.

Supermarkets are natural and important settings for implementing environmental interventions to improve healthy eating, and governmental policies could help improve the nutritional quality of purchases in this setting. This review aimed to: (1) identify governmental policies in the United States (U.S.), including regulatory and legislative actions of federal, tribal, state, and local governments, designed to promote healthy choices in supermarkets; and (2) synthesize evidence of these policies' effects on retailers, consumers, and community health. We searched five policy databases and developed a list of seven policy actions that meet our inclusion criteria: calorie labeling of prepared foods in supermarkets; increasing U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits; financial incentives for the purchase of fruit and vegetables; sweetened beverage taxes; revisions to the USDA Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) food package; financial assistance for supermarkets to open in underserved areas; and allowing online purchases with SNAP. We searched PubMed, Econlit, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and Business Source Ultimate to identify peer-reviewed, academic, English-language literature published at any time until January 2020; 147 studies were included in the review. Sweetened beverage taxes, revisions to the WIC food package, and financial incentives for fruits and vegetables were associated with improvements in dietary behaviors (food purchases and/or consumption). Providing financial incentives to supermarkets to open in underserved areas and increases in SNAP benefits were not associated with changes in food purchasing or diet quality but may improve food security. More research is needed to understand the effects of calorie labeling in supermarkets and online SNAP purchasing.

Barriers to healthy food access: Associations with household income and cooking behavior.

To examine how barriers to healthy food access and household income are associated with cooking and eating behaviors we fielded a nationally representative survey among 1112 adults in the United States in 2015. The survey included measures of barriers to accessing healthy food, household income, and frequency of cooking and eating meals, cooking practices, and other eating behaviors. We used multivariable poisson regression to examine the association of household income and barriers to healthy food access with cooking and eating behavior outcomes. We find that low income was associated with higher barriers to accessing healthy food (barriers) and that both income and barriers were associated with differences in cooking frequency/practices, and consumption behaviors. In interaction models, cooking and eating behaviors did not vary based on barriers for the lowest income level (<$25,000). In the middle income level ($25,000-$59,000), barriers were associated with cooking breakfast (3.35 vs. 2.64 times/week, p = 0.03) and lunch (3.32 vs. 2.56 times/week, p = 0.02) more frequently compared to those who never/rarely encountered barriers. At the highest income level (≥$60,000), barriers were associated with less frequently eating breakfast (4.29 vs. 5.11 times/week, p < 0.001) and lunch (4.77 vs. 5.56, times/week, p < 0.001) compared to those who never/rarely encountered barriers. Barriers to healthy food access are related to both household income and cooking and eating behaviors important for diet quality and healthy eating. Targeted interventions to address time available to shop, and the price, selection and quality of healthy foods, are necessary.

Grappling With Complex Food Systems to Reduce Obesity: A US Public Health Challenge.

Despite 2 decades of effort by the public health community to combat obesity, obesity rates in the United States continue to rise. This lack of progress raises fundamental questions about the adequacy of our current approaches. Although the causes of population-wide obesity are multifactorial, attention to food systems as potential drivers of obesity has been prominent. However, the relationships between broader food systems and obesity are not always well understood. Our efforts to address obesity can be advanced and improved by the use of systems approaches that consider outcomes of the interconnected global food system, including undernutrition, climate change, the environmental sustainability of agriculture, and other social and economic concerns. By implementing innovative local and state programs, taking new approaches to overcome political obstacles to effect policy, and reconceptualizing research needs, we can improve obesity prevention efforts that target the food systems, maximize positive outcomes, and minimize adverse consequences. We recommend strengthening innovative local policies and programs, particularly those that involve community members in identifying problems and potential solutions and that embrace a broad set of goals beyond making eating patterns healthier. We also recommend undertaking interdisciplinary research projects that go beyond testing targeted interventions in specific populations and aim to build an understanding of the broader social, political, and economic context.

Office-based ureteric stent removal is achievable, improves clinical flexibility and quality of care, whilst also keeping surgeons close to their patients.

INTRODUCTION: Diagnostic pressure on endoscopy suites can result in stent removal not receiving the required priority and unnecessary morbidity for patients. As well as using stents with extraction strings, the introduction of a portable single-use flexible cystoscope for ureteric stent removal (Isiris™), offered an opportunity to negotiate these issues by relocating stent removal to the office/clinic. This study aimed to determine whether such flexibility reduced stent dwell time with the assumption this would improve patient experience and decrease associated complications. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective review of ureteric stents placed during stone procedures was undertaken. Data collection included; patient demographics; stent dwell times; the number of emergency department (ED) attendances and hospital readmissions; procedure cancellation rates and the number of urinary tract infections. RESULTS: In total, 162 stents were removed (113 Standard, 34 Isiris™, 15 via strings). Excess dwell time was reduced in both Isiris™ (median 1 day, mean 1.37 days, p = 0.0009) and Strings Groups (median 0.96 days, mean 0.96 days, p = 0.022) compared with the Standard Group (median 8 days, mean 15.34 days).ED attendances and readmissions were reduced by 33.5% and 22% respectively in the Isiris™ Group compared with the Standard Group. There were no ED attendances in the Strings Group. Reductions in length of stay, urine infections and cancellation on the day of procedures were also observed. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical flexibility provided by Isiris™ and 'stents on strings' has objectively improved patient experience and is associated with a reduction in complications as well as increasing diagnostic capacity and cost efficacy.

Reducing meat consumption in the USA: a nationally representative survey of attitudes and behaviours.

OBJECTIVE: Excess meat consumption, particularly of red and processed meats, is associated with nutritional and environmental health harms. While only a small portion of the population is vegetarian, surveys suggest many Americans may be reducing their meat consumption. To inform education campaigns, more information is needed about attitudes, perceptions, behaviours and foods eaten in meatless meals. DESIGN: A web-based survey administered in April 2015 assessed meat reduction behaviours, attitudes, what respondents ate in meatless meals and sociodemographic characteristics. SETTING: Nationally representative, web-based survey in the USA. SUBJECTS: US adults (n 1112) selected from GfK Knowledgeworks' 50 000-member online panel. Survey weights were used to assure representativeness. RESULTS: Two-thirds reported reducing meat consumption in at least one category over three years, with reductions of red and processed meat most frequent. The most common reasons for reduction were cost and health; environment and animal welfare lagged. Non-meat reducers commonly agreed with statements suggesting that meat was healthy and 'belonged' in the diet. Vegetables were most often consumed 'always' in meatless meals, but cheese/dairy was also common. Reported meat reduction was most common among those aged 45-59 years and among those with lower incomes. CONCLUSIONS: The public and environmental health benefits of reducing meat consumption create a need for campaigns to raise awareness and contribute to motivation for change. These findings provide rich information to guide intervention development, both for the USA and other high-income countries that consume meat in high quantities.

Microbial Diversity of Browning Peninsula, Eastern Antarctica Revealed Using Molecular and Cultivation Methods.

Browning Peninsula is an ice-free polar desert situated in the Windmill Islands, Eastern Antarctica. The entire site is described as a barren landscape, comprised of frost boils with soils dominated by microbial life. In this study, we explored the microbial diversity and edaphic drivers of community structure across this site using traditional cultivation methods, a novel approach the soil substrate membrane system (SSMS), and culture-independent 454-tag pyrosequencing. The measured soil environmental and microphysical factors of chlorine, phosphate, aspect and elevation were found to be significant drivers of the bacterial community, while none of the soil parameters analyzed were significantly correlated to the fungal community. Overall, Browning Peninsula soil harbored a distinctive microbial community in comparison to other Antarctic soils comprised of a unique bacterial diversity and extremely limited fungal diversity. Tag pyrosequencing data revealed the bacterial community to be dominated by Actinobacteria (36%), followed by Chloroflexi (18%), Cyanobacteria (14%), and Proteobacteria (10%). For fungi, Ascomycota (97%) dominated the soil microbiome, followed by Basidiomycota. As expected the diversity recovered from culture-based techniques was lower than that detected using tag sequencing. However, in the SSMS enrichments, that mimic the natural conditions for cultivating oligophilic "k-selected" bacteria, a larger proportion of rare bacterial taxa (15%), such as Blastococcus, Devosia, Herbaspirillum, Propionibacterium and Methylocella and fungal (11%) taxa, such as Nigrospora, Exophiala, Hortaea, and Penidiella were recovered at the genus level. At phylum level, a comparison of OTU's showed that the SSMS shared 21% of Acidobacteria, 11% of Actinobacteria and 10% of Proteobacteria OTU's with soil. For fungi, the shared OTUs was 4% (Basidiomycota) and <0.5% (Ascomycota). This was the first known attempt to culture microfungi using the SSMS which resulted in an increase in diversity from 14 to 57 microfungi OTUs compared to standard cultivation. Furthermore, the SSMS offers the opportunity to retrieve a greater diversity of bacterial and fungal taxa for future exploitation.

The Roles of Sea-Ice, Light and Sedimentation in Structuring Shallow Antarctic Benthic Communities.

On polar coasts, seasonal sea-ice duration strongly influences shallow marine environments by affecting environmental conditions, such as light, sedimentation, and physical disturbance. Sea-ice dynamics are changing in response to climate, but there is limited understanding of how this might affect shallow marine environments and benthos. Here we present a unique set of physical and biological data from a single region of Antarctic coast, and use it to gain insights into factors shaping polar benthic communities. At sites encompassing a gradient of sea-ice duration, we measured temporal and spatial variation in light and sedimentation and hard-substrate communities at different depths and substrate orientations. Biological trends were highly correlated with sea-ice duration, and appear to be driven by opposing gradients in light and sedimentation. As sea-ice duration decreased, there was increased light and reduced sedimentation, and concurrent shifts in community structure from invertebrate to algal dominance. Trends were strongest on shallower, horizontal surfaces, which are most exposed to light and sedimentation. Depth and substrate orientation appear to mediate exposure of benthos to these factors, thereby tempering effects of sea-ice and increasing biological heterogeneity. However, while light and sedimentation both varied spatially with sea-ice, their dynamics differed temporally. Light was sensitive to the site-specific date of sea-ice breakout, whereas sedimentation fluctuated at a regional scale coincident with the summer phytoplankton bloom. Sea-ice duration is clearly the overarching force structuring these shallow Antarctic benthic communities, but direct effects are imposed via light and sedimentation, and mediated by habitat characteristics.

Isiris: A Novel Method of Removing Foreign Bodies from the Lower Urinary Tract to Avoid Unnecessary Hospitalization and Anesthesia.

BACKGROUND: Polyembolokoilamania refers to the practice of inserting foreign bodies (FBs) into natural orifices. A FB within the urethra is a relatively rare phenomenon with 646 cases recorded last year in the United Kingdom. Management of these patients presents technical challenges and complexities because of underlying psychiatric disorders that are often associated. This case illustrates a novel way of removing FBs from the genitourinary tract, requiring less resources, preventing hospital admission, and attempts to break the cycle of behavior, leading to recurrent attendance with polyembolokoilamania. CASE PRESENTATION: A 38-year-old Caucasian male prisoner, with psychiatric history presented to the emergency department (ED) with a history of inserting FBs into his urethra on 12 different occasions over a 6-week period. Of these 12 attendances, 3 resulted in admission and 2 required emergency intervention in theater under general anesthesia. After the third attendance in 5 days, it was decided to use Isiris™, a single-use flexible cystoscopy device with a built-in ureteral stent grasper, to remove the FBs and check the integrity of the urethra. The procedure was performed within the ED, without the need for admission to a ward bed or general anesthesia. Furthermore, only two members of staff were required to remove all of the urethral FBs. CONCLUSION: Isiris, although marketed as a stent removal device, enabled us to remove all the patient's FBs in one procedure. Isiris is an easy to use device, similar to a flexible cystoscope, that a specialist nurse or resident would be familiar using. It allows efficient and safe removal of lower urinary tract FBs, even out of hours. It requires minimal staffing support and can be done in the ED. It has the potential to reduce associated sequela of urethral polyembolokoilamania, saving resources while preserving the availability of the emergency theater.

Dispersal and dilution of wastewater from an ocean outfall at Davis Station, Antarctica, and resulting environmental contamination.

The Antarctic Treaty permits the discharge of wastewater into Antarctic marine waters providing that conditions exist for initial dilution and rapid dispersal. We investigated the dilution and dispersal of macerated wastewater around Australia's Davis Station in East Antarctica and examined sediments for evidence of contaminants. Methods used to examine hydrodynamic conditions included current meters, dye release experiments and measurement of sewage-associated microbial markers and surfactants in the water column. We measured marine sediments for metals, nutrients, PBDEs, hydrocarbons and faecal sterols. We propose that if there is adequate dilution and dispersal there would be no significant difference in contaminant concentrations in sediments around the outfall compared to distant control sites. Currents were strongly correlated with prevailing wind conditions. Modelling indicated that diffusivity of wastewater had the greatest effect on dilution factors and that neither discharge rates nor local currents had as much effect. During summer conditions of open water, wastewater is likely to be constrained in a narrow plume close to the coast. Concentrations of sewage bacteria were high around the outfall and detected up to 1.5 km away, along with dye. There were significant differences in sediment concentrations of metals, PBDEs, hydrocarbons, nutrients and faecal sterols between sites within 2 km of the outfall and control sites. We conclude that dilution and dispersal conditions at the Davis outfall are insufficient to prevent the accumulation of contaminants in local sediments and that microbial hazards posed by wastewater are an environmental risk to local wildlife.

Eat Right-Live Well! Supermarket Intervention Impact on Sales of Healthy Foods in a Low-Income Neighborhood.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate a multifaceted supermarket intervention promoting healthier alternatives to commonly purchased foods. DESIGN: Sales of 385 foods promoted between July and October, 2012 in the Eat Right-Live Well! intervention supermarket were compared with sales in a control supermarket. SETTING: Two supermarkets in geographically separate, low-income, urban neighborhoods. PARTICIPANTS: One control and 1 intervention supermarket. INTERVENTION: Product labeling, employee training, community outreach, and in-store promotions, including taste tests. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Number of items sold; absolute and percent differences in sales. ANALYSIS: Difference-in-difference analyses compared absolute and percent changes between stores and over time within stores. Sub-analyses examined taste-tested items and specific food categories, and promoted items labeled with high fidelity. RESULTS: Comparing pre- and postintervention periods, within-store difference-in-differences for promoted products in the intervention store (25,776 items; 23.1%) was more favorable than the control (9,429 items; 6.6%). The decrease in taste-tested items' sales was smaller in the intervention store (946 items; 5.5%) than the control store (14,666 items; 26.6%). Increased sales of foods labeled with high fidelity were greater in the intervention store (25,414 items; 28.0%) than the control store (7,306 items; 6.3%). CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Store-based interventions, particularly high-fidelity labeling, can increase promoted food sales.

Geological connectivity drives microbial community structure and connectivity in polar, terrestrial ecosystems.

Landscape heterogeneity impacts community assembly in animals and plants, but it is not clear if this ecological concept extends to microbes. To examine this question, we chose to investigate polar soil environments from the Antarctic and Arctic, where microbes often form the major component of biomass. We examined soil environments that ranged in connectivity from relatively well-connected slopes to patchy, fragmented landforms that comprised isolated frost boils. We found landscape connectedness to have a significant correlation with microbial community structure and connectivity, as measured by co-occurrence networks. Soils from within fragmented landforms appeared to exhibit less local environmental heterogeneity, harboured more similar communities, but fewer biological associations than connected landforms. This effect was observed at both poles, despite the geographical distances and ecological differences between them. We suggest that microbial communities inhabiting well-connected landscape elements respond consistently to regional-scale gradients in biotic and edaphic factors. Conversely, the repeated freeze thaw cycles that characterize fragmented landscapes create barriers within the landscape and act to homogenize the soil environment within individual frost boils and consequently the microbial communities. We propose that lower microbial connectivity in the fragmented landforms is a function of smaller patch size and continual disturbances following soil mixing.

Process Evaluation of a Comprehensive Supermarket Intervention in a Low-Income Baltimore Community.

Supermarket-based interventions are one approach to improving the local food environment and reducing obesity and chronic disease in low-income populations. We implemented a multicomponent intervention that aimed to reduce environmental barriers to healthy food purchasing in a supermarket in Southwest Baltimore. The intervention, Eat Right-Live Well! used: shelf labels and in-store displays promoting healthy foods, sales and promotions on healthy foods, in-store taste tests, increasing healthy food products, community outreach events to promote the intervention, and employee training. We evaluated program implementation through store environment, taste test session, and community event evaluation forms as well as an Employee Impact Questionnaire. The stocking, labeling, and advertising of promoted foods were implemented with high and moderate fidelity. Taste test sessions were implemented with moderate reach and low dose. Community outreach events were implemented with high reach and dose. Supermarket employee training had no significant impact on employees' knowledge, self-efficacy, or behavioral intention for helping customers with healthy purchasing or related topics of nutrition and food safety. In summary, components of this intervention to promote healthy eating were implemented with varying success within a large supermarket. Greater participation from management and employees could improve implementation.

The role of partnerships in U.S. Food Policy Council policy activities.

Food Policy Councils (FPC) help to identify and address the priorities of local, state, and regional food systems with the goal of improving food systems through policy. There is limited research describing FPCs' strategies for accomplishing this goal. As part of a larger study examining FPC policy efforts, this paper investigates the role of partnerships in food systems policy change. We conducted interviews with representatives from 12 purposefully selected FPCs in the United States and 6 policy experts identified by the selected FPC representatives to document and describe their policy work. One theme that emerged from those interviews was the role of partners. Interviewees described a range of partners (e.g., stakeholders from government, business, and education) and credited FPC partnerships with advancing their policy goals by increasing the visibility and credibility of FPCs, focusing their policy agenda, connecting FPCs to key policy inputs (e.g., local food community knowledge and priorities), and obtaining stakeholder buy-in for policy initiatives. Partnerships were also described as barriers to policy progress when partners were less engaged or had either disproportionate or little influence in a given food sector. Despite these challenges, partnerships were found to be valuable for FPCs efforts to effectively engage in the food policy arena.

Community fingerprinting in a sequencing world.

Despite decreasing costs, generating large-scale, well-replicated and multivariate microbial ecology investigations with sequencing remains an expensive and time-consuming option. As a result, many microbial ecology investigations continue to suffer from a lack of appropriate replication. We evaluated two fingerprinting approaches - terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) and automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis (ARISA) against 454 pyrosequencing, by applying them to 225 polar soil samples from East Antarctica and the high Arctic. By incorporating local and global spatial scales into the dataset, our aim was to determine whether various approaches differed in their ability and hence utility, to identify ecological patterns. Through the reduction in the 454 sequencing data to the most dominant OTUs, we revealed that a surprisingly small proportion of abundant OTUs (< 0.25%) was driving the biological patterns observed. Overall, ARISA and T-RFLP had a similar capacity as sequencing to separate samples according to distance at a local scale, and to correlate environmental variables with microbial community structure. Pyrosequencing had a greater resolution at the global scale but all methods were capable of significantly differentiating the polar sites. We conclude fingerprinting remains a legitimate approach to generating large datasets as well as a cost-effective rapid method to identify samples for elucidating taxonomic information or diversity estimates with sequencing methods.

Urban community gardeners' knowledge and perceptions of soil contaminant risks.

Although urban community gardening can offer health, social, environmental, and economic benefits, these benefits must be weighed against the potential health risks stemming from exposure to contaminants such as heavy metals and organic chemicals that may be present in urban soils. Individuals who garden at or eat food grown in contaminated urban garden sites may be at risk of exposure to such contaminants. Gardeners may be unaware of these risks and how to manage them. We used a mixed quantitative/qualitative research approach to characterize urban community gardeners' knowledge and perceptions of risks related to soil contaminant exposure. We conducted surveys with 70 gardeners from 15 community gardens in Baltimore, Maryland, and semi-structured interviews with 18 key informants knowledgeable about community gardening and soil contamination in Baltimore. We identified a range of factors, challenges, and needs related to Baltimore community gardeners' perceptions of risk related to soil contamination, including low levels of concern and inconsistent levels of knowledge about heavy metal and organic chemical contaminants, barriers to investigating a garden site's history and conducting soil tests, limited knowledge of best practices for reducing exposure, and a need for clear and concise information on how best to prevent and manage soil contamination. Key informants discussed various strategies for developing and disseminating educational materials to gardeners. For some challenges, such as barriers to conducting site history and soil tests, some informants recommended city-wide interventions that bypass the need for gardener knowledge altogether.

A framework for understanding grocery purchasing in a low-income urban environment.

Research demonstrates that food desert environments limit low-income shoppers' ability to purchase healthy foods, thereby increasing their likelihood of diet-related illnesses. We sought to understand how individuals in an urban American food desert make grocery-purchasing decisions, and specifically why unhealthy purchases arise. Analysis is based on ethnographic data from participant observation, 37 in-depth interviews, and three focus groups with low-income, primarily African American shoppers with children. We found participants had detailed knowledge of and preference for healthy foods, but the obligation to consistently provide food for their families required them to apply specific decision criteria which, combined with structural qualities of the supermarket environment, increased unhealthy purchases and decreased healthy purchases. Applying situated cognition theory, we constructed an emic model explaining this widely shared grocery-purchasing decision process and its implications. This context-specific understanding of behavior suggests that multifaceted, system-level approaches to intervention are needed to increase healthy purchasing in food deserts.