Consumption of fast foods has become a global phenomenon. At the same time, the world is experiencing an obesity epidemic. The question is, are these two things related? Currie et al (2010) carried out a correlational study in the USA with data from four states (California, Michigan, Texas and New Jersey) comprising roughly 3 million children. Her research found that among ninth graders, a fast food restaurant within 0.1 miles of a school results in a 5.2 percent increase in obesity rates. Non-fast food restaurants showed no significant correlation with weight outcomes.

India’s fast-food industry is expanding at the rate of 40% every year. India ranks 10th in fast food per capita spending figures with 2.1% of expenditure in annual total spending.  In light of the growing obesity epidemic among middle and upper class Indian children, Joseph et al (2015) carried out a study to see if they could see a link between fast food consumption and body weight.

This study was done to assess the awareness of health hazards, consumption pattern of fast foods and to find out its association with overweight among high school students. The study was cross-sectional with a sample of 300 high school boys from three private schools in Mangalore city. The mean age was 13.5 years old.

Data was collected using a semi-structured self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire asked about the frequency of fast food meals, years of fast food consumption, awareness of health hazards, time spent in fast food restaurants and parental food consumption patterns. In addition, the boys were asked about the type and frequency of physical activity.  Finally, their height and weight were measured, and their height and weight from two years previous were obtained from the school register.

Out of 300 participants, 16.4% of the boys were either overweight or obese. 97.3% were fast food users of which 14.4% consumed fast food every day. The researchers found that parental consumption of fast food had a significant influence on their children’s eating habits.

Increased frequency of fast food consumption in a week was found to be associated with overweight or obesity status among children after matching for physical activity. (p=0.003).

Peer influence was also seen as playing a role in fast food consumption.  Fast food restaurants are important centers for socializing with one’s peer group among adolescents.

• The study was naturalistic and had a relatively large sample size.
• The data was collected both from questionnaires and from interviews.  This is method triangulation which increases the credibility of the study.
• The study was cross-sectional, so it does not show change over time.
• Although matched for some variables, there are confounding variables that were not accounted for.
• The study has a gender bias, only looking at the behaviour of young boys.  Although there is potentially a cultural bias, the study reflects research that is found in Western cultures (see the study by Currie et al (2010) that begins this summary).

Currie, J, S DellaVigna, E Moretti and V Pathania. The Effect of Fast Food Restaurants on Obesity and Weight Gain. American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, Vol. 2, No. 3 (August 2010), pp. 32-63 Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/25760073

Joseph, N., M Nelliyanil, S Rai, R Babu, S Kotian, T Ghosh and M Singh. Fast Food Consumption Pattern and Its Association with Overweight Among High School Boys in Mangalore City in Southern India. J Clin Diagn Res. 2015 May; 9(5): LC13–LC17. Published online 2015 May 1. doi: 10.7860/JCDR/2015/13103.5969