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Is It Opposite Day, Or Can Being Carless Really Make You Fat?

Is It Opposite Day, Or Can Being Carless Really Make You Fat?

By Richard Read's avatar Richard ReadRichard Read September 22nd, 2009

Overweight

Overweight

Enlarge Photo

The anti-car movement insists that automobiles have made us fat and lazy -- and there's some truth to that. However, a new study in the Journal of Urban Health shows that being carless doesn't always mean being healthier. Of the 2,156 individuals studied, car owners weighed about 8.5 pounds more than their carless colleagues -- the exception being when carless people lived in neighborhoods full of fast food restaurants. In those cases, not having a car meant about 2.7 pounds more body weight. So, lesson of the day: not having a car is fine until you start walking to Mickey D's instead of the gym. [JUH via Autoblog]

OverweightEnlarge Photo The anti-car movement insists that automobiles have made us fat and lazy -- and there's some truth to that. However, a new study in the Journal of Urban Health shows that being carless doesn't always mean being healthier. Of the 2,156 individuals studied, car owners weighed about 8.5 pounds more than their carless colleagues -- the exception being when carless people lived in neighborhoods full of fast food restaurants. In those cases, not having a car meant about 2.7 pounds more body weight. So, lesson of the day: not having a car is fine until you start walking to Mickey D's instead of the gym. [JUH via Autoblog]

Tags: Driving, Miscellaneous, ownership, health



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Responses (2 total)

  1. By  Robert #1, Posted: 9/22/2009

    This probably has more to do with economics than cars. Those on the lower end of the socioeconomic spectrum--those who can't afford cars--tend to eat unhealthy food more often. And riding a bus doesn't burn more calories than riding in your very own car :)

  2. fb_643488824 avatar by Richard Read #2, Posted: 9/22/2009

    I'd tend to agree. Being carless can require more physical activity, but that activity is counteracted by poor eating habits, the gain is nil. In other words, there's a difference between choosing not to own a car and not being able to own a car.

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