The type of food served in bars and restaurants affects the health of those who live nearby. This is demonstrated by a pioneering study published in Circulation Heart Failure, the journal of the American Heart Association, which reveals that people who live near pubs, bars and fast food establishments have a higher risk of suffering from heart failure.
Education and the availability of facilities for physical exercise in the surrounding areas are also determining factors, given that the risk is greater for those who do not have university studies and for those who live in areas that do not have spaces to do sports.
This research, published on Tuesday, is one of the first to focus on analyzing the impact of the food environment on people's health, according to its authors, and not on the quality of the food eaten, as they had done. many studies before.
Those responsible, coordinated by Lu Qi, epidemiologist and professor at Tulane University in New Orleans (United States), used the health information of more than half a million adults in the United Kingdom, registered in the UK Biobank database. In the study, they took into account whether participants were exposed to three types of food environments: pubs or bars, restaurants or cafes, and fast food places. Likewise, they considered the distance they were – being close to less than a kilometer – and the number of establishments in this radius.
Through a twelve-year follow-up, almost 13,000 cases of heart failure were recorded, and it was shown that the closer and denser these fast food restaurants were, the greater the risk of suffering from this condition.
The study concludes that those who live near prepared food establishments have a higher risk of suffering from heart failure, and 16% more in the case of people who live less than a kilometer from these establishments.
Secondly, having a home close to bars and pubs increases the probability of suffering from this ailment by 14%, and by 13% more if the distance is 500 meters.
Finally, those who live less than one kilometer from a fast food establishment have a 12% greater risk of suffering from this disease and a 10% greater risk if the distance is 500 meters compared to those who lived within two kilometers.
The results obtained have not been surprising for researchers. In a statement, Qi explained that "previous studies have already suggested that exposure to environments with ready-to-eat foods is associated with the risk of other disorders, such as type 2 diabetes and obesity, which may increase the risk of heart failure." ”.
However, the authors consider that the sample does not represent the entire population, given that the majority profile was elderly, white and resident in the United Kingdom. Therefore, according to Elissa Driggin and Ersilia M. DeFilippis, doctors at Columbia University Medical Center (New York), it is important to expand the analysis to other different communities, such as the black population, given the “clear association” between this community and “a high incidence of heart failure, compared to white patients.”
The results demonstrate the need to improve the quality of environments related to food, facilitate access to better education, and promote access to sports facilities to prevent this condition.
