Snacks may be at the heart of obesity; convenience stores targeted in South L.A.

Links found by researchers between snack foods and obesity in poor communities are prompting new calls for more regulation of convenience stores in South Los Angeles.

The proposed new regulations are an outgrowth and expansion of last year's city restrictions on new fast-food restaurants in a 32-square-mile area of South Los Angeles. The area is home to about 500,000 residents, including those who live in West Adams, Baldwin Hills and Leimert Park.

Motivated by new data focusing on convenience stores, civic activists and a City Council member favor limiting the development of such stores.

According to a study by the Rand Corp., a Santa Monica think tank, published last week in the research journal Health Affairs, calories from snacks were a likely culprit of higher obesity rates in South Los Angeles. The authors also found that South Los Angeles had a dramatically higher concentration of the type of small convenience store that sells caloric snacks than other sections of the city.

Separately, researchers looking at the shopping patterns of schoolchildren in urban Philadelphia found that more than half the 800 students they surveyed reported that they shopped at a corner store at least once a day, five times a week. Almost a third visited a store both before and after school.

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-- Jerry Hirsch

Twitter.com/LATimesJerry

Photo: Studies show that candy and other snacks sold at convenience stores are a likely culprit in high obesity rates in poor communities. Credit: Joe Raedle / Getty Images

Comments

[Kellie Glass RD, LD]

As I have stated previously, regulating fast food restaurants or corner stores will not cure the obesity crisis. Instead of punishing these types of businesses, why don't we focus our efforts on education? We need to educate young people on how to incorporate all foods in moderation in the context of an overall healthy lifestyle. For more information, see my book, "How To Eat Fried Chicken and Be Thin Too" on Amazon or at strategicbookpublishing.com

[Alecu]

Midnight snacks are the worst. Waking up in the middle of the night for a snack and late suppers will easily make you gain weight. I have read on http://www.projectweightloss.com 5 easy steps that may help quitting snacks; e.g. a warm cup of tea and its relaxing effects will keep your mind busy long enough to forget about the sense of hunger and make you feel fuller in the same time. Most of those who don`t eat during a big part of the day, usually have a rich dinner when they get home but this way they actually lead to an insulin “explosion”. It is better to equally distribute your meals during the day.