Why neighborhood park proximity is not associated with total physical activity

Orion T Stewart; Anne Vernez Moudon; Alyson J Littman; Edmund Seto; Brian E Saelens

doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2018.05.011

Why neighborhood park proximity is not associated with total physical activity

Health Place. 2018 Jul:52:163-169. doi: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2018.05.011. Epub 2018 Jun 9.

Authors

Orion T Stewart¹, Anne Vernez Moudon², Alyson J Littman³, Edmund Seto⁴, Brian E Saelens⁵

Affiliations

¹ Urban Form Lab, University of Washington, 1107 NE 45th Street Suite 535, Seattle, WA 98105, United States. Electronic address: otstewart@ucdavis.edu.
² Urban Form Lab, University of Washington, 1107 NE 45th Street Suite 535, Seattle, WA 98105, United States; College of Built Environments Department of Urban Design and Planning, University of Washington, Box 355740, Seattle, WA 98195, United States.
³ Seattle Epidemiologic Research and Information Center, Department of Veterans Affairs, Seattle, WA, United States; Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Box 357236, Seattle, WA 98195, United States.
⁴ School of Public Health Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences, University of Washington, Box 357234, Seattle, WA 98195, United States.
⁵ Seattle Children's Research Institute, P.O. Box 5371, M/S: CW8-6, Seattle, WA 98145, United States; School of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Box 356320, Seattle, WA 98195, United States.

PMID: 29894907
DOI: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2018.05.011

Abstract

This study explored how parks within the home neighborhood contribute to total physical activity (PA) by isolating park-related PA. Seattle-area adults (n = 634) were observed using time-matched accelerometer, Global Positioning System (GPS), and travel diary instruments. Of the average 42.3 min of daily total PA, only 11% was related to parks. Both home neighborhood park count and area were associated with park-based PA, but not with PA that occurred elsewhere, which comprised 89% of total PA. This study demonstrates clear benefits of neighborhood parks for contributing to park-based PA while helping explain why proximity to parks is rarely associated with overall PA.

Keywords: Built environment; Green space; Recreation; Social determinants of health; Urban planning.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

Accelerometry
Adult
Aged
Environment Design
Exercise*
Family Characteristics
Female
Geographic Information Systems
Humans
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Middle Aged
Overweight / epidemiology
Parks, Recreational*
Public Facilities
Recreation
Regression Analysis
Residence Characteristics*
Travel
Urban Population
Walking / statistics & numerical data
Washington / epidemiology

Grants and funding

R01 HL091881/HL/NHLBI NIH HHS/United States