Obesity Rate in LA Still High Amid Fast-Food Ban

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Los Angeles tried to fight the rise of obesity by putting a restriction on fast-food restaurant chains in a 2008 ordinance. Despite the ban however, a study has shown that the obesity still continues to rise in Los Angeles. 

According to The Star, the Rand Corporation conducted a research on the obesity rates in South Los Angeles in relation to the zoning law passed in 2008. The law was passed to help people in the area lead healthier lives.  

Tech Times explains that the policy placed a ban on the opening of new fast-food restaurants in the following areas: south and southeast Los Angeles, Baldwin Hills, and Leimert Park. 

Despite the city's efforts to promote a healthy lifestyle, however, obesity rates have not gone down. In fact, obesity rates have actually increased faster in the areas that the law targeted, reports CNBC.

The Rand Corporation reported the following about the study: 

"Data from the California Health Interview Survey show that fast-food consumption and overweight/obesity rates have increased from 2007 to 2011/2012 in all areas. The increase in the combined prevalence of overweight and obesity since the ban has been significantly larger in south Los Angeles than elsewhere." 

Roland Sturm, the senior economist in the Rand study believes, "[the ordinance] had no meaningful effect," reports The Star.

Part of the reason the ordinance did not have much of an effect is because it only targeted "standalone fast food" restaurants or ones that are part of a major chain. The law does not apply to small food business in the area, notes Tech Times. 

According to WebMD, Sturm explains, "This [finding] should not come as a surprise: Most food outlets in the area are small food stores or small restaurants with limited seating that are not affected by the policy." 

In addition to the numerous small food business in the areas, big restaurant chains found a way to circumnavigate the law, which decreased its effectiveness. According to The Star, the chains just built outlets in strip malls and food courts.  

Even with the fast-food ban however, experts say that people would need to exercise and make lifestyle changes in order to lower the obesity rate. Alex Ortega, a professor of public health at the University of California, shares her thoughts on the law with The Star .  

Ortega, who never took part in the study, states, "It's not just about limiting unhealthy food, but increasing access to healthy food." 

The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and published in the journal titled "Social Science & Medicine."