The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation recently selected a study by Baylor University professor Dr. Brennan Davis as “the most influential child obesity research for the past year.”
Davis discovered a direct correlation between the proximity of fast food restaurants to schools and adolescent obesity. In a study of over 500,000 youth, it was found that students who attended school within a half mile of fast food restaurants “(1) consumed fewer servings of fruits and vegetables, (2) consumed more servings of soda, and (3) were more likely to be overweight”.
His findings support the Healthy People Healthy Places Framework co-developed by Worldways Co-founder Mark Marosits. This framework examines the importance of identifying both the behavioral and environmental factors that contribute to health.
While other studies have identified that fast food restaurants are often situated close to schools, this is the first known study that demonstrates the impact thereof. Davis and co-author Dr. Christopher Carpenter argue that policy intervention is necessary to combat this issue.
Their study, “Proximity of Fast-food Restaurants to Schools and Adolescent Obesity“, was published in the March 2009 issue of the American Journal of Public Health.
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