america's obesity epidemic? "nightline" investigates. and a revolution from coast to coast. spontaneous dance parties are sending thousands into the streets. social media meets dance madness. >> keep it right here, america. "nightline" is back in 60 seconds.

hello, everyone. thanks for joining us. it used to be that after a woman had a baby, she took some time to stay home, take care of the child and herself. the baby fat came off gradually. but no more, alas. inspired by celebrity moms like gwyneth paltrow. many women are going straight from the delivery room into the

gym to look at slim as their favorite stars. but is the big business now of fast fitness promoting an unrealistic and unfair ideal? >> reporter: you see them on the red carpet and splashed across magazine covers, gorgeous, stylish and incredibly in shape new moms, sometimes looking better than ever just months after giving birth. it's a nearly impossible ideal to live up to, but that's not stopping many regular moms from trying part of a recent and some would say disturbing trend to lose pregnancy weight faster than ever. ally carlin is the stay at home mom to two kids. welcome to south cycle. an intense indoor cycling class where you can burn hundreds of calories in a single ride. it's a favorite workout for many moms looking to shed that baby weight.

she had her two children back to back and said she wanted to get back in shape and finally focus on herself. >> it's been kind of the challenge the past year and a half, i guess. losing my baby weight from my second kid. >> reporter: even if she doesn't look like a supermodel, she still feels the pressure to try. >> two weeks later they're in bikinis on the beach. >> reporter: nick orem says moms trying to lose baby weight are some of his biggest clients. >> i would say a large percentage of my clients are moms. i would say upwards of 80%. >> reporter: and they aren't just doing one class a week. >> they do doubles, triples, quadruples. that's four rides with me. >> reporter: moms at this baby body boot camp can relate. >> there's pressure from family, there's pressure from media, there's pressure everywhere. >> reporter: they're working out even before their babies are big enough to crawl. >> when i was teaching a class five days a week, people came five days a week. >> reporter: in fact, an entire

industry has sprung up around moms who want to look hot pushing a stroller, and even before. tracy anderson has built her brand around keeping celebrity moms fit both during and after pregnancy. >> really keeping our butt as lifted as we possibly can during the pregnancy. >> reporter: she trained hollywood a-listers and went into business with her client and friend gwyneth paltrow. but for most moms, looking like gwyneth isn't possible. >> don't you think you're partly responsible for kind of creating that standard that we have to look a certain way? >> i hate that actually. i really do believe that every single one of us is really beautiful, and especially we're beautiful when we're working to connect to our body, when we're working to be our personal best. i think that's beautiful. >> is it fair to expect women who have recently had a baby to get into shape so quickly. >> first of all, everybody's life is unique. as soon as your doctor releases you to work out, you have to start reconnecting to your body. what's hard is that you know

what it's like to start working out again after being pregnant. it's the worst thing ever. >> reporter: medical experts agree. it is healthy to exercise during pregnancy. >> open up your shoulders. >> reporter: gone are the days of lying in bed and eating for two. like "i love lucy." >> which is that? >> hot fudge. >> pour it on top. >> reporter: but being obsessed with your weight while pregnant and immediately after is another story. a recent study in england of 700 pregnant women found that 1 in 14 suffer from an eating disorder, lower than the general population, but higher than previously thought. >> the fact is when you're surrounded by that kind of imagery, when it's air brushed and photoshopped, it actually does affect how we feel about our body image? we can't meet it. so i think women actually feel that they fall short. they feel like they haven't done it the right way or enough. and that's problematic.

>> reporter: celebrities, unlike most of us, have armies of people to help them get their post baby bod. >> i have patients in my practice who are celebities. that is their work. they spend four or five hours in the gym every day three or four times a week. that is what they do. but at the same time i have everyday women who have full-time jobs who maybe have a baby at home. they have to rush home after work. they would much prefer to spend time with their children than at the gym. and they're going to take a little longer. >> reporter: it's hard for some celebrities, too. kim kardashian is working out with tracy anderson, but has been skewered in if the tabloids for gaining weight. >> i feel bad for her. anyone who has to do that under the pressure of being photographed all the time. you know, sometimes when you're pregnant, the last thing you want to do. you want to be in sweats. you look like a house. >> reporter: still, anderson is positive kim's body will be back and better than ever. >> are you putting pressure on her? >> no, i'm not.

i'm confident in her. she seems excited about the moment she gets fit, hit the gym and get her body back. she obviously trusts that i know how to do. and i do. and as long as she shows up, you know, she'll do it. >> reporter: but for real moms, they are doing it on their own. >> i wanted to look good after having kids and i wanted to, you know, be a good role model for my kids. >> all moms are beautiful. thanks to paula for that. next up, a surprising look at what's on the menu in some of america's hospitals. you won't believe it. fast food. hoo-hoo...hoo-hoo. hoo-hoo hoo. sir... i'll get it together i promise...

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>> you might think fast food like burgers, fries and sodas would be the last thing you would find in a hospital. but around the country, where many are being treated, fast food restaurants are popping up almost as quickly as the meals they serve. lindsay davis investigates the recipe for controversy. >> burgers fries and soda have saturated the american landscape, even in the most unlikely places, where some people seem to be shy to be on camera. >> looks a lot like a food court at the mall. this is a hospital. the same place we go to get

healthy. and to combat diseases like diabetes, cardiac arrest and obesity. this is some of what's on the menu. while there are, of course, salads and veggie burgers in the cafeteria, many hospitals across the nation have a fast food franchise in them. >> it's ironic, it's tragic. this shouldn't be that way. we need to get those outlets away from a healing place like a hospital. food plays a huge role in the health and healing of people. >> reporter: susan levine is head dietician for the commission for responsible medicine, which released a report on the worst hospital food environments at children's hospitals. what did you find? >> a lot of fast food outlets in hospitals, plus high fat, high calorie, unhealthful foods served in the cafeterias as well. >> reporter: one of the worst offenders? shands children hospital in gainesville, florida, with a whopping five fast food restaurants. >> well, i would say they're dead wrong. i think you will find that we are one of the superior

hospitals in the united states. >> reporter: the chief of pediatric for shands hospital also told at-bats abc news nutrition is an issue they take seriously and the report had many inaccuracies. he added patients do not eat at the hospital calf fear yeah or these franchises. but if they or their families find their way to the hospital food court when they do so, they will have a variety of food choice, just as our employees do. most people we spoke to here at the hospital aren't exactly kplaping about the fast food choices. >> it was great. you come here and you're all upset that you need that comfort food. and there's lots of things to choose from. and that's what we needed, to be comforted. >> i like it. >> reporter: after reviewing the fission committee's report, shands hospital responded, insisting that not all of the fast food chains are physically located inside the hospital. some are actually right by a main entrance. in a statement, the hospital

said, the choices offered are similar to what a person would find on main street, usa, and healthy options are available at these outlets. and just like main street, hospitals are no different. it's part of their business plan. >> the only thing that keeps the hospitals in the black because they take profits from it and they use them. maybe you are looking at a little bit of a conflict of interest there. >> reporter: keeping patient care going comes at a very steep cost. and some doctors, like dr. jessica baher say the very people they're trying to save -- >> half my patients have a mcdonald's in their hand when they come there. i have diabetics telling me they're working on their diet but they have a big mac in one hand and a soda in another. >> reporter: we saw it all. patients filling up on fast food. >> it's an optics issue and perhaps a conflict of mission issue. and we're dealing with that. >> reporter: the ceo of truman

hospital has been rather vocal about his distaste for fast food on campus. isn't that tantamount to having an alcohol vendor in the same building that has aa meetings? >> to some extent i tend to agree with that. there are some inconsistencies, however, there are some logical reasons. >> reporter: logical reasons like? >> children hospital and the comfortability and the anxiety that might be surrounding the illness oof that family. >> if there is a fast food outlet in a kid's hospital, those kids are four times as likely to eat from that fast food outlet. and unfortunately, the guardians and parents of these kids are likely to have a false perception that that food is healthier. >> reporter: one month after "nightline's" visit, the mcdonald's was closed after both parties made the decision to end the 20-year relationship. in a statement toing as, mcdonald's said, as always, we will continue to engage in dialogue with our customers and with experts to determine future

opportunities to offer expanded menu choices and information that allows our customers to make choices right for them. as for truman hospital, dr. blewford says he's pleased say it will help healthy eating initiatives that are disease specific and medication compliance efforts. we think of these opportunities as better. better for everyone. >> so do you think there's no place for fast food in hospitals? >> i think there's no place for fast food in hospitals. because i don't think those restaurants have an interest in kids' health. they have an interest in making money. for "nightline" i'm lindsay davis in kansas city, missouri. >> good story. thanks to lipd say for that. coming up, a call to take to the streets all in the name of social media and a good time. [ male announcer ] at his current pace, bob will retire when he's 153,

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oh, ho ho... it's the honey sweetness. i...i mean, you...love. >> it's a party like no other. a roaming mob with boom boxes in hand, and they're about to invade a down here you called a

decentralized dance party. the movement is powered by social media and who. guys who think fun is the answer to brokering world peace. we welcome rachel smith tonight line. >> reporter: it looks like absolute mayhem. but it's just about the most organized party on the planet. an evolution of the flash mob, a massive mobile party bound for a city near you. ♪ party all day party all night ♪ ♪ whoa, whoa ♪ party all day >> my name is tom. >> my name is gary. >> and this is the decentralized dance party. >> reporter: gayry started the movement 3 1/2 years ago with 20 people. in six month, it included 20,000. is it safe to say your occupation these days are

partying? like your career is to party? >> yeah. that's our job. >> reporter: they're often mistaken for a riot or protest. their mission is simple. unite people through party. >> they're having unrest, turmoil, division. bring everyone together. have a crazy night of global unity. and we'll win the nobel prize for partying. >> reporter: each party take ang army. party planners send hundreds of hours collecting boom boxes and scouting lo kpapgs they spread the word through social media, invading over 30 major cities so far, powered by grassroots fundraising. taking over any good party is the music. >> we have thousands of people with us when we're on the streets. if we choose the wrong song, this could choose into a riot. >> reporter: gary wirelessly

transmits tunes to hundreds of boom boxes from his backpack. >> leonardo. >> reporter: the array of boom boxes are tested and prepped before they're handed out. >> my name is mitch. my job is to get all the radios working. party proofing them. decorating. and putting in batteries. and getting them tuned into the radio stations. >> reporter: the fashionable threads and accessories are led by this guy. >> when we're on tour, most of the time, we stop off at any thrift store we can find. we get fake plants we can dres up. we make them better. >> your ensemble. oh, so weird. >> reporter: my grandmother's silk robe. >> reporter: tom and gary pulled an all-nighter. scouting the city streets

inspecting landmark buildings, even parking garages. >> we tried to enjoy residential areas so people don't freak out. and stay to public spaces as much as we can. it's our right to assemble facefully. >> that's one of the benefits of doing these. we get to discover amazing places in every city that no one would ever know existed. >> reporter: the next night picnic tables turned dance floor. there was great dancing at the bank. harlem shaking at a plaza and slow dancing at the power plant. surprisingly, it all stayed relatively peaceful. >> 53 parties and we've been shut down three times.

and it's usually for some kind of misunderstanding. >> no one has to drink. no one is on drugs, anything like that. just come and let loose your inhibitions. >> every night we risk who knows what. new country, new cities. go to jail. >> reporter: why do you do it? >> because it's worth it. >> reporter: why? >> it's fun. people come up to me in tears telling me this is the greatest night of their lives. >> reporter: can partying bring world peace? who knows. but until then, nothing unites us like a little love. >> thank for watching abc news. tune into good morning america tomorrow. as always, we're on line at abc news.com. good night, america.