Fast Food and Presumptive Heart Attack in Calgary, Canada

Abstract

Method: Patients with heart attack were identified in the Calgary Laboratory Services database as having a blood test with a critical value indicating heart attack. A second group of participants with no heart issues were identified in the same database and matched to the heart attack group by age and sex at a 1:4 ratio. All participants were mapped in a mapping program and individual level information about the density and distance to fast food outlets was collected. This geographic data was exported for statistical analysis. Results: If the density of fast food within 1000 meters is above average a participant is 1.226 times more likely to have a presumptive heart attack than participants with exposures less than average. Conclusions: More study is required to determine if this relationship is time dependent and whether this relationship is also affected by fast food around workplaces.