Link Between Obesity and Fast Food
Reported January 4, 2005
(Ivanhoe Newswire) — A new study shows a clear link between fast food consumption and weight gain and insulin resistance, suggesting that fast food increases the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes.
Obesity is becoming increasingly problematic in the United States. By the year 2000, nearly one-third of Americans were clinically obese, compared to 23 percent of the population between 1988 and 1994.
Researchers from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and Children’s Hospital Boston investigated the association between reported fast food habits and changes in bodyweight and insulin resistance over 15 years. They assessed the diets of more than 3,000 young adults in the United States.
Researchers found changes in fast food frequency over 15 years was directly associated with changes in bodyweight among whites, as opposed to a weaker association among blacks. An increase in fast food consumption was also associated with increased insulin resistance in both ethnic groups.
Researchers conclude, “Fast food habits have strong, positive, and independent associations with weight gain and insulin resistance in young black and white adults. Fast food consumption can be linked to adverse health outcomes through plausible mechanisms, and results from other studies lend support to our findings. In view of the high and increasing rates of fast food consumption, further research into the effects of this dietary pattern on public health should be given priority.”
SOURCE: The Lancet, 2005;365:36-42