Study: Fast food location can weigh on teens

Rate of obesity higher at schools near eateries

Teens who attend classes within one-tenth of a mile of a fast food outlet are more likely to be obese, researchers say. (JB Reed/ Bloomberg/ File 2006)

Barely 300 feet separate Fullerton, Calif., Union High School from a McDonald's restaurant. Researchers say that that's boosting the odds that its students will be super-sized.

Teens who attend classes within one-tenth of a mile of a fast-food outlet are more likely to be obese than peers whose campuses are farther from the lure of quarter-pound burgers, fries, and shakes.

Those are the findings of a recent study put out by researchers from the University of California at Berkeley and Columbia University seeking to find a link between obesity and the easy availability of fast food.

The academics studied body-fat data from more than 1 million California ninth-graders over an eight-year period, focusing on the proximity of the school to well-known chains including McDonald's, Burger King, KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut.

Their conclusion: Fast food and young waistlines make lousy neighbors.

The presence of an outlet within easy walking distance of a high school - about 530 feet or less - resulted in a 5.2 percent increase in the incidence of student obesity compared with their California peers, a correlation deemed "sizable," according to the findings.

The link vanished when these fast-food joints were farther from campus, presumably because students couldn't reach them easily.

Nor was it present in schools near full-service eateries, whose prices and service times typically don't match student budgets, tastes, or schedules.

"Fast food offers the most calories per price compared to other restaurants, and that's combined with a high temptation factor for students," said Stefano DellaVigna, a Berkeley economist and one of the paper's authors.

The researchers said cities concerned about battling teen obesity should consider banning fast-food restaurants near schools.

At Fullerton Union, one-third of the ninth-graders examined over the eight-year study period were obese. That compares with a 27 percent rate at La Habra High School over the same period.

Just 6 miles from Fullerton Union, La Habra High has similar demographics, but its neighboring fast-food eateries are farther from the campus entrance.

The findings figure to fuel the debate over what's driving America's obesity epidemic.

Concerned about growing rates of diabetes and heart disease - particularly among young people - state and local governments nationwide are taking aim at fatty, high-calorie foods.

But blaming restaurants for the nation's weight problem strikes many as misguided.

Obesity can be a product of many factors, experts say, including genetics, exercise, and household nutrition.

Courts have struck down attempts by patrons to sue restaurant chains for making them fat.