Food Environment, Dietary Behaviour, and Overweight Prevalence in Urban Slum Communities of Lagos, South West Nigeria

Urban slum communities in Lagos present a unique nutritional paradox: residents face simultaneous exposure to cheap energy-dense foods and persistent food insecurity, creating a context distinct from both rural undernutrition and affluent urban dietary transition. This study examines the food environment, dietary behaviour, and overweight prevalence in selected slum communities of Mushin and Ajegunle in Lagos State, South West Nigeria. A mixed-methods cross-sectional study was conducted. The food environment was characterised using a standardised food retailer audit tool mapping the density, type, and nutritional quality of food outlets within a defined catchment radius. Individual dietary behaviour was assessed using a 24-hour dietary recall and a brief Dietary Quality Index in 380 adult residents randomly sampled from household listings. Overweight and obesity were determined through body mass index measurement. Structural equation modelling examined pathways from food environment characteristics to dietary behaviour and body mass index, incorporating household income and food security as moderators. In-depth interviews with 20 purposively selected participants explored perceived food access barriers, food choice rationale, and social norms around eating. Findings are expected to reveal that street food vendor density, affordability of ultra-processed snacks, and limited fresh food access shape dietary patterns in ways that increase overweight risk even in low-income slum communities. The study contributes to an underrepresented area of food environment nutrition research in West Africa. Keywords: food environment, dietary behaviour, overweight, urban slums, Lagos.