Steps towards Sustainability: Relationships between Neighborhood Environment and Physical Activity

Background:Neighborhood environment attributes of walkability and access to recreation facilities have been related to physical activity and weight status, but most self-report environment measures are lengthy. The 17-item PANES (Physical Activity Neighborhood Environment Scale) was developed to be comprehensive but brief enough for use in multipurpose surveys. The current study evaluated test-retest and alternate-form reliability of PANES items compared with multi-item subscales from the longer NEWS-A (Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale—Abbreviated).Methods:Participants were 291 adults recruited from neighborhoods that varied in walkability in 3 US cities. Surveys were completed twice with a 27-day interval.Results:Test-retest ICCs for PANES items ranged from .52 to .88. Spearman correlations for the PANES single item vs NEWS-A subscale comparisons ranged from .27 to .81 (all P < .01).Conclusions:PANES items related to land use mix, residential density, pedestrian infrastructure, aesthetic qualities, and safety from traffic and crime were supported by correlations with NEWS-A subscales. Access to recreation facilities and street connectivity items were not supported. The brevity of PANES allows items to be included in studies or surveillance systems to expand knowledge about neighborhood environments.

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Abstract MP88: Neighborhood-Level Socioeconomic Deprivation Predicts Weight Gain in a Multi-Ethnic Population: Longitudinal Data from the Dallas Heart Study

Circulation ◽

10.1161/circ.127.suppl_12.amp88 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 127 (suppl_12) ◽

Author(s):

Priscilla Agyemang ◽

Colby Ayers ◽

Min Lian ◽

Sandeep Das ◽

Christine Hoehner ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Weight Gain ◽

Weight Change ◽

Socioeconomic Deprivation ◽

Neighborhood Environment ◽

Dallas County ◽

Heart Study ◽

Deprived Neighborhoods ◽

Dallas Heart Study ◽

Neighborhood Level

Background: Although neighborhood-level socioeconomic deprivation associates with prevalent obesity, its relationship to individual-level weight change over time is poorly elucidated. Few studies have evaluated the impact of behavioral and psychosocial factors on this relationship. Methods: We examined the relationship between neighborhood-level socioeconomic deprivation and weight change among those who did not move in the 7-year study period (N=955) of the Dallas Heart Study (DHS), a multi-ethnic, population-based sample of Dallas County residents aged 18-65. Baseline weight measurements were performed in 2000-02 and weight was re-measured at 7-year follow-up. Home addresses obtained at baseline and follow-up were geocoded and linked to residential census tracts in Dallas County. A neighborhood deprivation index (NDI) for DHS participants was created using factor analysis of 21 census-tract neighborhood characteristics, with higher scores indicating more socioeconomic deprivation. Repeated-measures linear mixed modeling with random effects was used to determine weight change (kg) relative to tertiles of NDI. Reported physical activity (yes/no: exercised <150 mets/min-wk) and perceptions of neighborhood environment (questionnaire-derived score with higher score = more unfavorable perceptions of neighborhood violence, aesthetics, and social cohesion) were examined as mediators. Results: DHS participants living in more socioeconomically deprived neighborhoods had lower income and education (p-trend <0.001 for both). Blacks were more likely to live in more socioeconomically deprived neighborhoods than whites and Hispanics (p<0.001). Adjusting for age, sex, race, smoking, education, and income as fixed effects, DHS participants living in the most socioeconomically deprived neighborhoods (highest NDI tertile) gained 5.8±2.5 more kilograms (p=0.02) over the 7-year period compared to those in the least deprived neighborhoods. Living in the most socioeconomically deprived neighborhoods remained associated with a 6.4±2.5 kg greater increase in weight (p=0.01) compared to living in the least deprived neighborhoods after adjustment for physical activity levels and a 6.6±2.6 kg greater increase in weight (p=0.01) after adjustment for perceptions of neighborhood environment. Conclusions: Living in more socioeconomically deprived neighborhoods is associated with greater weight gain among DHS participants over a 7-year period. This relationship does not appear to be fully explained by lower levels of physical activity or unfavorable perceptions of the neighborhood environment. In Dallas County, the high risk for greater weight gain among people living in socioeconomically deprived neighborhoods supports the need to develop targeted community-based interventions to address obesity and reduce disparities in cardiovascular risk.

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Validation of the Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale (NEWS) Items Using Geographic Information Systems

Journal of Physical Activity and Health ◽

10.1123/jpah.6.s1.s113 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 6 (s1) ◽

pp. S113-S123 ◽

Cited By ~ 79

Author(s):

Marc A. Adams ◽

Sherry Ryan ◽

Jacqueline Kerr ◽

James F. Sallis ◽

Kevin Patrick ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Information Systems ◽

Geographic Information Systems ◽

Built Environment ◽

Traffic Congestion ◽

Concurrent Validity ◽

Geographic Information ◽

Activity Level ◽

Neighborhood Environment ◽

Objective Measures

Background:Concurrent validity of Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale (NEWS) items was evaluated with objective measures of the built environment using geographic information systems (GIS).Methods:A sample of 878 parents of children 10 to 16 years old (mean age 43.5 years, SD = 6.8, 34.8% non-White, 63.8% overweight) completed NEWS and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. GIS was used to develop 1-mile street network buffers around participants’ residences. GIS measures of the built environment within participants’ buffers included percent of commercial and institutional land uses; number of schools and colleges, recreational facilities, parks, transit stops, and trees; land topography; and traffic congestion.Results:Except for trees and traffic, concordance between the NEWS and GIS measures were significant, with weak to moderate effect sizes (r = −0.09 to −0.36, all P ≤ 01). After participants were stratified by physical activity level, stronger concordance was observed among active participants for some measures. A sensitivity analysis of self-reported distance to 15 neighborhood destinations found a 20-minute (compared with 10- or 30-minute) walking threshold generally had the strongest correlations with GIS measures.Conclusions:These findings provide evidence of the concurrent validity of self-reported built environment items with objective measures. Physically active adults may be more knowledgeable about their neighborhood characteristics.

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Test–retest reliability of the Physical Activity Neighborhood Environment Scale among school students in China

Public Health ◽

10.1016/j.puhe.2015.10.001 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 130 ◽

pp. 91-94 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

F. Xu ◽

E. Leslie ◽

Z. Wang ◽

H. Zhou ◽

N. Owen

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Neighborhood Environment ◽

School Students ◽

Retest Reliability ◽

Environment Scale ◽

Test Retest Reliability

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Perceived Barriers to Walking in the Neighborhood Environment: A Survey of Middle-Aged and Older Adults

Journal of Aging and Physical Activity ◽

10.1123/japa.15.3.318 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 15 (3) ◽

pp. 318-335 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

Jill Dawson ◽

Melvyn Hillsdon ◽

Irene Boller ◽

Charlie Foster

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Older Adults ◽

Neighborhood Environment ◽

Perceived Barriers ◽

Activity Levels ◽

Environmental Attributes ◽

Physical Activity Levels ◽

Health Related ◽

Low Levels ◽

The Uk

The authors investigated whether low levels of walking among older adults in the UK were associated with demographic and health characteristics, as well as perceived environmental attributes. Survey data were obtained from self-administered standard questionnaires given to 680 people age 50+ (mean age 64.4 yr) attending nationally led walking schemes. Items concerned with demographic characteristics and perceived barriers to neighborhood walking were analyzed using multiple logistic regression. Citing more than 1 environmental barrier to walking, versus not, was associated with significantly reduced levels of (leisure) walking (MET/hr) in the preceding week (Z = –2.35, p = .019), but physical activity levels overall did not differ significantly (Z = –0.71, p = .48). Citing a health-related barrier to walking significantly adversely affected overall physical activity levels (Z = –2.72, p = .006). The authors concluded that, among older people who favor walking, health problems might more seriously affect overall physical activity levels than perceived environmental barriers.

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Neighborhood environment correlates of physical activity and sedentary behavior among Latino adults in Massachusetts

BMC Public Health ◽

10.1186/s12889-016-3650-4 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Valerie J. Silfee ◽

Milagros C. Rosal ◽

Meera Sreedhara ◽

Vilma Lora ◽

Stephenie C. Lemon

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Sedentary Behavior ◽

Neighborhood Environment ◽

Latino Adults

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Positive Association of Physical Activity with Both Objective and Perceived Measures of the Neighborhood Environment among Older Adults: The Aichi Workers’ Cohort Study

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17217971 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (21) ◽

pp. 7971

Author(s):

Yuanying Li ◽

Hiroshi Yatsuya ◽

Tomoya Hanibuchi ◽

Atsuhiko Ota ◽

Hisao Naito ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Leisure Time ◽

Leisure Time Physical Activity ◽

Positive Association ◽

Neighborhood Environment ◽

Green Spaces ◽

Moderate Intensity ◽

Objective Measures ◽

Japanese Adults ◽

Japanese Residents

We examined the association between objective and perceived neighborhood characteristics and self-reported leisure-time physical activity (PA) in older Japanese residents living in areas ranging from metropolitan to rural in 2016. Objective measures used were walkability and the numbers of parks/green spaces and sports facilities within 500 or 1000 m of subjects’ homes, calculated using geographic information systems. Subjective measures were the subjects’ perceptions of their neighborhoods, assessed using a structured questionnaire. All variables were divided into three groups, and the lowest tertile was used as the reference. We assessed the location and frequency of strolling or brisk walking, moderate-intensity PA, and vigorous-intensity PA (sports) using a self-reported questionnaire and defined as performing a certain type of PA 3–4 times/week as a habit. Living in a neighborhood in the highest tertile for walkability and number of parks/green spaces as well as perception of having good access to recreational facilities, observing others exercising and the presence of walkable sidewalks was associated with walking and sports habits (multivariable odds ratios (ORs): 1.33–2.46, all p < 0.05). Interestingly, objective measures of PA-friendly environmental features were inversely associated with moderate-intensity PA habits, potentially because moderate-intensity PA consisted predominantly of gardening. In conclusion, living in an environment supportive of PA, whether objectively or subjectively measured, is related to leisure-time PA habits among older Japanese adults.

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