With its plethora of densely packed food stores, Toronto’s Leslieville scored well. Because of its density many parts of Toronto’s downtown did better in the "food swamp" index.

Food swamps have been described as areas with a heavy concentration of fast food restaurants and convenience stores offering nutrient poor food.

A food swamp is an area where there’s an overabundance of high-energy, low nutrient foods (read: fast food) compared to healthy food options.

The caloric imbalance that leads to obesity is, of course, an issue about entire diets, not specific foods. But the extensive amount of energy-dense offerings available at these venues may in fact inundate, or swamp out, what relatively few healthy choice foods there are. Thus, we suggest that a more useful metaphor to be used is "food swamps" rather than food deserts.