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Fast food fanatics who routinely scarf down burgers and fries will have a tougher time blaming anyone but themselves for their weight or health problems. Twenty states have passed so-called ``cheeseburger bills'' aimed at preventing lawsuits against restaurants and food manufacturers for obesity-related claims. Bills are pending in 11 other states. Maine was the first New England state to approve the legislation last month. The Masschusetts Restaurant Association has yet to back such a bill. And while the bills slid through many state legislatures without garnering much attention or opposition, at least one public health advocate doubts that would happen here. ``We would certainly be there, and I think there are other public health groups in Massachusetts that are aware of the issue and would want to be heard,'' said Richard Daynard, a professor who heads the Obesity and Law Project at Northeastern University's Public Health Advocacy Institute. ``What I don't like about them is all they do is immunize food marketers from the ordinary legal responsibility that they and every other marketer of a consumer product bears,'' Daynard said. ``It's always bad when somebody is put above the law.'' … But the association so far hasn't seen lawyers swarming to file the suits. The personal injury cases are challenging to try even without the statutes, according to Daynard. ``You have to show not only that that McDonald's did something wrong, but you have to show that that misbehavior was a significant contributing cause to the plaintiff's developing his obesity and his resulting illness,'' he said.
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