The closer a child in New York City lives to a fast-food restaurant, the more likely the child is to be overweight or obese, according to a new analysis by researchers at New York University School of Medicine.
It is the small distances—a half block or a block from a fast-food outlet—that matter the most, said Brian Elbel, of the Department of Population Health, NYU School of Medicine and Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.
“Something about these fast-food places and being close to them matters,” said Dr. Elbel, who has a Ph.D. in health policy and health economics, “but it’s only so influential and there’s a broader suite of things that influence childhood obesity.”
Private philanthropy and public-health officials have been trying to crack the childhood epidemic of obesity for decades, spending millions on research, fresh-food initiatives, public-health campaigns and other efforts.
In recent years, studies of city schoolchildren have shown that, based on self-reported height and weight, more than 1 in 4 youth aged 12 to 19 are overweight or obese, according to data from the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Black and Hispanic students are more likely to be obese, while severe obesity is highest among minority, poor and male children, according to recent research from the health department.
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A review by NYU researchers of height and weight data of 3.5 million New York City public-school children, ages 5 to 18, found that 19% were obese and 37% overweight. Those percentages remained steady from 2009 to 2013, the years researchers analyzed.
Researchers found that 20% of children in the data who lived within a half-block of a fast-food outlet were obese, and 38% were overweight. Among children who live within a half-block of a corner store or bodega, 21% were obese and 40% were overweight.
Representatives for the National Restaurant Association didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Obesity figures dropped the further away a child lives from an unhealthy food source. There was, however, no increase in obesity risk in the distance a child lived from a grocery store or sit-down restaurant. Researchers looked only within census tracts, not comparing a child from the Upper East Side to one on the Lower East Side, for example.
Dr. Elbel of NYU said the findings could be used to influence public policy. Lawmakers could provide more incentives to encourage supermarkets to come into high-need areas, he said. And in the way that liquor stores, for example, aren’t able to be sited near schools, so, too, could there be policies about the number and siting of fast-food restaurants.
However, cautioned Dr. Elbel, “even if we were to limit fast food around homes or schools, it’s not enough to curb obesity on its own.”
Write to Melanie Grayce West at melanie.west@wsj.com
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