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The common practice of
placing junk food along checkout aisles increases the risk of obesity,
researchers argue.
Checkout aisles are
prime stops for impulse purchases. When we arrive there, we may be distracted,
stressed, tired or drained of our ability to make conscious and deliberate
decisions, Dr. Deborah Cohen, of RAND Health in Santa Monica, Calif., and Susan
Babey, of UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, wrote Oct. 11 issue of the
New England Journal of Medicine. As a result, we are likely to make unconscious
decisions that do not reflect our true desire, like the last-minute purchase of
a candy bar, Cohen and Babey said.
Marketers know this,
and will pay more to have their products placed in prominent locations. Such
placement can increase a product's sales by a factor of five, Cohen and Babey
said. Thus, junk food in prominent locations is more likely to be purchased and
consumed, which in turn increases the risk of chronic disease, the pair said. "In
light of the public health implications, steps should be taken to mitigate that
risk," Cohen and Babey said.
Researchers should test
new strategies to reduce obesity risk, such as limiting the types of foods that
can be displayed in a checkout aisle, and restricting junk foods to more
obscure locations within the store. "Harnessing marketing research to
control obesity could help millions of people who desperately want to reduce
their risks of chronic diseases," Cohen and Babey said.
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