Where there are fast-food restaurants, you will likely find obese people. And that’s just as true for kids who have them close to their schools. If logic isn’t enough, a study has confirmed it.
A new report has found there to be an increased obesity rate of at least 5.2 percent among teenagers at schools where fast-food outlets were a tenth of a mile or less away. That’s only about one city block, so it’s believable that the kids would partake in a little take-out.
Eric N. Gioia, a city councilman from Queens, New York. wants to stop fast-food restaurants from opening so close to the city’s schools.
“With the proliferation of fast-food restaurants directly around schools, it’s a clear and present danger to our children’s health,” says Gioia, who proposed the ban at a news conference.
Under Mr. Gioia’s proposal, new fast-food restaurants would not be prohibited within a tenth of a mile of schools (about a city block), with existing restaurants being exempt. It sounds like a flawed proposal. Look for new fast-food restaurants two blocks from New York City schools.
Even though Mr. Gioia says that the ban should be accompanied by other adjustments, being in a free society, it will be hard to legislate away bad food choices.
(via: New York Times)
Mr. Gioia’s goal is ambitious but agreed, I’m not sure that 1/10 of a mile difference is really going to have that much influence on children. Most studies have suggested that restaurants up to 0.5 miles from schools continue to have influence over the eating habits of children. We need to fight for stricter fast-food legislation while offering our children healthier substitutes on school sites.