Fast-food meals marketed for kids are more likely to be unhealthy than healthy, according to a new report the LA Times reported.

After analyzing the menu offerings from 18 fast-food chains, researchers from the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity determined that less than 1 percent of the meals offered to children were considered healthy.

Researchers considered all the possible combinations of main dishes, sides and drinks - for a total of 5,427 possible meals. Of those combinations, only 33 met recommended nutrition standards.

According to the Medical Daily, Rudd Center director Marlene Schwartz told reporters fast-food chains have failed to meet promises to improve nutritional standards for food marketed toward children. Schwartz said the issue is of paramount importance as the obesity rate, and associated illnesses, continues to rise in America.

"There were some improvements, but they have been small, and the pace too slow," she said. "Without more significant changes, we are unlikely to see meaningful reductions in unhealthy fast food consumption by young people."

The study found that 11 out of 12 of the restaurants with kids' meals "had at least one option for a side dish that the Rudd Center considered healthy," the LA Times reported. These included sliced apples, bananas, fruit cups, applesauce, green beans, corn or salads.

In addition, more than three-quarters of the restaurants increased healthy beverage options.

McDonalds was singled out in the story for the dramatic changes it has made in the past few years to its kids menu such as automatically including apples and only a half-serving of French fries to its Happy Meal.

Researchers also found the fast-food industry spent $4.2 billion on advertising to encourage frequent visits by young people to fast food restaurants, targeting children as young as 2-years old.

Fast-food restaurants have cut back on commercials aimed at younger children between the ages of 6 and 11, but boosted the number of ads aimed at teens.

According to a 2012 study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, one-third of children and 41 percent of teens eat fast food every day. And on days that do include a fast-food meal, the daily caloric intake rises by 126 for children and by 310 for teens.