- On any given day, one in every three children eats a
fast-food meal at McDonald's, Burger King and the like, according to a
new U.S. study.
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- The children who eat fast food consume, on average, an
additional 187 calories daily, the researchers found.
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- While that may not sound like much -- it's the equivalent
of a medium soft drink -- it translates into an additional six pounds a
year in excess body weight and goes a long way toward explaining the skyrocketing
rates of childhood obesity.
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- The new research, published in today's edition of the
journal Pediatrics, tracked the dietary habits of 6,212 children aged 4-19
over almost five years. Children and their parents reported what the children
had eaten over a period of 24 hours.
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- On a typical day, 30.3 per cent reported eating meals
purchased at fast-food establishments, defined as places without table
service.
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- Respondents were asked to specify the types of fast food
they ate -- burgers, fries, pizza and other fat-laden foods -- but weren't
asked to identify the establishments.
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- Other sources for children's meals included supermarkets,
cafeterias, soup kitchens, farmers' markets and bars.
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- "Fast food has become a prominent feature of the
diet of children," said David Ludwig, director of the obesity program
at Children's Hospital Boston, and lead author of the study.
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- Dr. Ludwig said children who routinely eat fast-food
meals consume not only more calories, but also more fat (including trans
fats), more sugar, more salt; they also eat fewer vegetables, consume less
fibre and drink less milk.
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- "On a typical day that fast food is eaten, children
consume substantially more energy and have worse dietary quality than a
typical day without fast food," he said.
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- The researcher noted that in 1970, fast food accounted
for less than 2 per cent of the caloric intake (or energy) of children;
by the early 1990s, it accounted for more than 10 per cent; the new research
shows that, today, children are getting up to 38 per cent of their energy
from burgers, fries and other fatty foods.
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- Dr. Ludwig said that while fast food is not the sole
factor in the exploding girth of children, there is no doubt that "fast-food
consumption adversely affects dietary factors linked to obesity risk."
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- He pointed to an earlier study that showed that children
who eat fast food more than twice a week are 86 per cent more likely to
end up obese than those who rarely or never consume fast food.
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- While the research was conducted in the United States,
researchers said the findings are applicable in Canada, where fast-food
consumption patterns are similar.
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- The U.S. government surveys which provided the raw data
did not include questions about body weight so researchers could not make
a direct link between fast-food consumption and weight.
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- But, in an accompanying editorial in the same edition
of Pediatrics, Kelly Brownell, an obesity researcher at Yale University,
said the data provide more damning evidence that regular fast-food consumption
leads to greater calorie intake and markedly increases the risk of obesity.
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- In particular, Dr. Brownell denounced a report published
in July by the U.S. National Chamber of Commerce that concluded that fast-food
restaurants "are not the chief culprit in the fattening of America."
She said this claim was "reminiscent of the early claims by the tobacco
industry" that tobacco was not harmful to people's health.
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- Dr. Brownell said "children deserve protection from
damaging forces" such as fast- food marketing and too-ready access,
such as fast-food outlets in schools.
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- In a related development, the American Academy of Pediatrics
yesterday called for the sale of soft drinks to be banned in all schools,
saying they are a principal factor in childhood obesity and tooth decay.
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- In a policy statement published in Pediatrics, the influential
group said that only unsweetened fruit juices, water and milk should be
offered for sale in school cafeterias and vending machines.
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Reserved.
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