No Car and Easy Access to Fast-Food Restaurants Prompts Weight Gain

No Car and Easy Access to Fast-Food Restaurants Prompts Weight Gain. A published study suggests that individuals who live close to a fast-food restaurant and do not have access to a car are more likely to have excess weight than car owners residing in the same neighborhood. Analyzing data on more than 2,100 adults living in 63 neighborhoods in Los Angeles, researchers found that, on average, car owners weighed 8.5 pounds more than non-car owners. However, in areas with five or more fast-food restaurants per square mile, non-car owners weighed 2.7 pounds more than their neighbors who owned cars and 12 pounds more than residents of areas without fast-food outlets. Individuals who did not own a car and lived in areas without fast-food outlets recorded the lowest weight. The researchers attribute the weight variations to the fact that individuals who are less affluent and do not own cars are unable to travel the distance necessary to obtain healthier foods, resulting in overreliance on the lower-priced, higher-calorie foods available at fast-food outlets. Journal of Urban Health, September 2009