Consumer Confidential: Junk food, mo’ money, airline strike

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Here’s your thoughtfully Thursday roundup of consumer news from around the Web:

--Weight and diabetes risk go down when the cost of a burger and fries go up. This unsurprising conclusion comes courtesy of researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, who say they find people consume less fast food when it costs more, but when prices go down, people eat more junk. ‘These results indicate that increasing the price of fast foods and sodas can affect adult behavior, and steer them toward healthier diets, lower weight and less risk of diabetes,’ the researchers write. On the other hand, they don’t call them ‘value meals’ for nothing.

--On Wednesday came news that the number of millionaires was growing. Now comes word that the total net worth of American households rose 1.3% in the last few months of 2009 to $54.2 trillion. This reflects fast-climbing stock prices (at least over the last year) and increased economic stability. Even so, we’re still well below our pre-recession wealth of nearly $66 trillion. My question: Why don’t I feel any richer?

--Heads up if you have plans to fly on American Airlines. Flight attendants have warned they may ask federal officials to let them take a step closer to going on strike. Now mechanics and other ground workers are asking for the same, ratcheting up the stakes in long-running labor talks at the nation’s second-largest carrier. The Transport Workers union says it wants federal mediators to declare a stalemate in the talks, starting a 30-day clock that could lead to a strike.

-- David Lazarus