Work

Planning policies to restrict fast food and inequalities in child weight in England: a quasi‐experimental analysis

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: England has one of the highest childhood obesity rates in Europe. To promote a healthier food environment in 2015, Gateshead Council in North East England introduced planning guidelines effectively banning any new fast-food outlets. Our aim was to investigate whether this policy led to any reductions in childhood overweight and obesity prevalence and the inequalities in these outcomes. METHODS: We used data from the National Child Measurement Programme, the Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme data, and the Office of National Statistics between 2012 and 2020. We estimated a difference-in-differences model employing propensity score matching to identify a control group. RESULTS: We found no significant change in population-level childhood overweight and obesity in Gateshead compared with control areas. In subgroup analysis by area-level deprivation, we found that the quintile of deprivation with the highest proportion of fast-food outlets had a statistically significant reduction of 4.8% in the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity compared with control areas. CONCLUSIONS: Restricting fast-food outlets in areas with a high concentration of such outlets as part of a package of policies to reduce childhood obesity may help to reduce prevalence and inequalities in childhood overweight and obesity.

Source: Obesity

DOI: 10.1002/oby.24127

Authors: Huasheng Xiang, Louis Goffe, Viviana Albani, Nasima Akhter, Amelia A. Lake, Heather Brown

Institutions: Lancaster University, Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle University, Teesside University

Language: English

Topic: Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet

Subfield: Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,740