Study: Fast-Food Chains Near Urban Schools Affect Obesity More among Blacks, Hispanics

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When their schools are near fast-food restaurants, black and Hispanic adolescents are more likely to be overweight and receive less benefit from exercise than Asian or white students, according to new study.

The study, published in the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, found that for all students, having a fast-food restaurant a mile nearer to school almost entirely cancels the body weight benefits of exercising one day per week.

However, for black and Hispanic students in lower-income urban neighborhoods, having a fast-food restaurant a mile nearer to school may cancel the benefits of up to three days of exercise per week.

The study underscores the importance of understanding how adolescents respond to fast-food availability near school, researchers said.

“Our study demonstrates that fast food near schools is an environmental influence that has magnified effects on some minority children at lower-income urban schools,” said Dr. Brennan Davis, assistant professor of marketing at Baylor University, who co-authored the study with Dr. Sonya Grier, associate professor of marketing at American University.