A federal court judge in New York dismissed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against McDonald's on behalf of three children who contended they became obese from eating at the hamburger giant.

The suit charged that McDonald's negligently sold food high in cholesterol and fat, and failed to warn about the dangers of Big Macs and McNuggets. The company was also negligent, it alleged, because it marketed food that was addictive.

"If consumers know (or reasonably should know) the potential ill health effects of eating at McDonald's, they cannot blame McDonald's if they, nonetheless, choose to satiate their appetite with a surfeit of supersized McDonald's products," Judge Robert W. Sweet said.

In order to claim negligence, the judge said, the complaint must allege that the food chain's products are "so extraordinarily unhealthy that they are outside the reasonable contemplation" of consumers, or that the products are "so extraordinarily unhealthy as to be dangerous in their intended use."

The complaint "fails to reach this bar," he ruled, because "it is well-known that fast food in general, and McDonald's products in particular, contain high levels of cholesterol, fat, salt and sugar, and that such attributes are bad for one."

The suit was one of at least four cases that have been filed against fast-food chains over the obesity issue. Two cases have been dropped and another is dormant.

Other sources: NY Media