photo credit: russelljsmith
A new study conducted by the California Center for Public Health Advocacy (CCPHA) suggests calorie information alone won’t curb our fast food appetite. Their research has shown that people who live in neighborhoods with an abundance of fast-food restaurants have higher obesity rates than people who live in areas more supermarkets and produce vendors. Now, this seems kind of obvious, but it is an interesting look at just how important knowing the caloric value of a meal really is.
However, the study didn’t look at income or education differences between the groups. Without knowing exactly what neighborhoods were surveyed, I’d guess that the neighborhoods with more fast-food places and convenience stores were less affluent than neighborhoods with health food stores and supermarkets.
Many studies have shown that people with lower incomes tend to eat more processed foods than people with higher incomes who can afford “luxuries” such as fresh fruits and veggies. Click the link below to read more about the study.