Supersizing Supercenters? The Impact of Wal-Mart Supercenters on Body Mass Index and Obesity

Charles Courtemanche and Art Carden ()
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Art Carden: Rhodes College, Postal: Department of Economics and Business, Rhodes College, 2000 N. Parkway, Memphis TN 38112

No 09-3, UNCG Economics Working Papers from University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Department of Economics

Abstract: Research attributes much of the rise in obesity to technological progress reducing the cost of food consumption. We examine this hypothesis in the context of Walmart Supercenters, whose advancements in retail logistics have translated to substantial reductions in food prices. Using data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System matched with Walmart Supercenter entry dates and locations, we examine the effects of Supercenters on body mass index (BMI) and obesity. We account for the endogeneity of Walmart Supercenter locations with an instrumental variables approach that exploits the unique geographical pattern of Supercenter expansion around Walmart’s headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas. An additional Supercenter per 100,000 residents increases average BMI by 0.25 units and the obesity rate by 2.4 percentage points. These results imply that the proliferation of Walmart Supercenters explains 11% of the rise in obesity since the late 1980s, but the resulting increase in medical expenditures offsets only a small portion of consumers’ savings from shopping at Supercenters.

Keywords: Walmart; Wal-Mart; supercenter; obesity; body weight; body mass index (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I10 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 50 pages
Date: 2008-09-04, Revised 2010-01-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea and nep-ure
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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Journal Article: Supersizing supercenters? The impact of Walmart Supercenters on body mass index and obesity (2011)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ris:uncgec:2009_003

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