Food deserts are areas, typically in urban or rural settings, where access to affordable, nutritious food is limited or nonexistent. People living in food deserts may have difficulty obtaining fresh, healthy food options.

A Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) is a dietary assessment tool that asks people how often they eat specific foods and beverages over a set period, such as the past month or year. It’s commonly used in nutrition research to estimate usual dietary patterns in large groups. FFQs are efficient and cost-effective, but they rely on memory and may not accurately capture portion sizes or all culturally specific foods.

Food labeling involves the information and details provided on the packaging or label of food products. This information typically includes the product name, ingredients, nutritional content, allergens, serving size, and manufacturer details. Food labeling informs consumers about the product’s composition, nutritional value, and potential allergens, helping them make informed choices about food purchases.

Food marketing refers to the activities and strategies businesses and organizations use to promote, advertise, and sell food products to consumers. It encompasses various techniques, such as advertising, branding, packaging, pricing, and distribution, aimed at influencing consumer behavior and preferences toward specific food products.

“Food noise” is a term used to describe the intensified and lasting responses individuals have to signals or stimuli associated with food. This heightened reactivity often results in intrusive thoughts about food and the adoption of behaviors that are not conducive to healthy eating.

Food reinforcement refers to the psychological and physiological processes that drive individuals to seek and consume food. It involves the rewarding aspects of eating, which can be influenced by sensory pleasure, taste, and the satisfaction of hunger.

The “Food Reinforcement Value Questionnaire” (FRVQ) is a psychological assessment tool used to measure how much effort a person is willing to exert to obtain a specific food, essentially gauging the “reinforcing value” of that food compared to other alternatives. This questionnaire is often used to study eating behaviors, understand the psychological factors influencing food choices, and potential links to obesity by assessing how strongly someone is motivated by food rewards.

Food security is a broader concept encompassing not only affordability but also availability, accessibility, and utilization of food. It is the condition in which all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.

Food texture is defined as a group of physical properties derived from food structure that can be sensed by elements of the oral and pharyngeal cavities (Paik & Nam-Jong, 2020).

Viscosity refers to the thickness or the “resistance to flow” of a substance. Foods and fluids that are thinner have lower viscosity, and those that are thicker have higher viscosity. Looking at liquids, for instance, water has a low viscosity, and olive oil has a high viscosity.