A growing nutritional concern in the United States and Mexico is the rise in prevalence of obesity. In Mexico, 70% of the adult population is either overweight or obese while the United States is not far behind, at 69% prevalence. This is alarming because prior to the 1980s, the main nutritional concern in Mexico was that of malnutrition rather than over nutrition, showing evidence of rapid nutritional transition. Obesity has been linked to issues of access to nutritional, healthful foods and physical activity facilities, with barriers consisting of location, time, and money. Grocery stores and fitness facilities were mapped in Boone, NC and Puebla de los Angeles, Mexico, comparing access for student populations of Appalachian State University and Benemerita Universidad Autonoma de Puebla. Google Maps' Maps Engine was used to create maps and track facilities. Results show that the Boone area has six grocery stores and sixteen fitness facilities serving a population of 17,774, while the Puebla area has thirteen grocery stores and eighteen fitness facilities serving a population of 1,539,819. Access to fresh fruits and vegetables and fitness faciltiies appears to be more limited in the Mexico area than in the Boone area, when population is considered.
