What is already known on this topic? Previous literature confirmed a positive association between clusters of fast-food restaurants around schools and obesity rates of school children. Few studies about fast-food clustering around schools have been conducted in a high-density urban setting such as Hong Kong.What is added by this report? Fast-food restaurants around secondary schools were substantially clustered in Hong Kong. The school food environment in Hong Kong showed unique heterogeneities compared with the school food environment in a Western setting.
What are the implications for public health practice?Students in some areas may have a disproportionate share of health problems caused by an obesogenic environment. Observed clusters of fastfood restaurants in Hong Kong can alert policy makers to design effective interventions targeting the secondary schools located in such environments.
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