Urban Sprawl and Physical Activity Levels

城市扩张和体育活动水平

• 批准号: 6965771
• 负责人: I-Min Lee
• 金额: $ 13.97万
• 依托单位: HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2005
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2005-09-01 至 2007-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/6965771
• 关键词: behavioral /social science research tag; body physical activity; clinical research; environmental health; geographic difference; health behavior; human data; socioenvironment; travel; urban area

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This application responds to PA-03-015, which supports preliminary studies to demonstrate the feasibility of novel research approaches. It has a 10-page limit and limited budget. The present application investigates a novel approach to increasing physical activity levels. Physical activity is beneficial for health; however, most Americans are sedentary. Recently, there has been interest in whether the physical environment can influence activity levels among large numbers of people. The available data have two main limitations. First, the data come primarily from land use and transportation research, using cross-sectional studies. These data indicate an association between the built environment and choice of transportation (car, bus, walk, etc.). However, it is unclear whether the built environment influences physical activity, or whether active persons prefer living in a particular built environment. Second, studies from public health research, with similar findings, have used self-reports of the physical environment. These results may be biased by active persons being more aware of facilities which encourage exercise (e.g., parks, shops within walking distance, etc.). The present study investigates the association between the physical environment and physical activity, addressing the limitations above. It will test the primary hypothesis that persons living in areas with less urban sprawl have higher levels of physical activity. Date from the Harvard Alumni Health Study (HAHS) and the Trials of Hypertension Prevention Follow-up Study (TOHP) will be used. HAHS comprises about 10,000 men who returned health surveys in 1988 and 1993. TOHP comprises about 3,300 men and women who returned health surveys in 1988-95 and again in 1999-2004. An objective measure of urban sprawl will be assigned to each subject, at each of the two time points, using subjects' addresses and GIS mapping. An urban and transportation planner will provide expertise on urban sprawl measures. In both studies, physical activity was assessed using validated questions on walking, climbing stairs, and leisure activities. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses will be conducted. A pilot study in HAHS indicated that 16% of men changed addresses between 1988 and 1993. Examining persons who move will minimize bias from active persons who choose to live in areas with less urban sprawl. This study will provide important information for planning or redesigning communities in order to maximize the potential for physical activity and health.

描述（由申请人提供）：本申请响应PA-03-015，该申请支持初步研究以证明新研究方法的可行性。它有10页的限制和有限的预算。本应用研究了一种增加身体活动水平的新方法。体育活动有益于健康；然而，大多数美国人都是久坐不动的。最近，人们对自然环境是否会影响大量人群的活动水平产生了兴趣。现有的数据有两个主要的局限性。首先，数据主要来自土地使用和交通研究，采用横断面研究。这些数据表明，建筑环境与交通选择（汽车、公共汽车、步行等）之间存在关联。然而，目前尚不清楚建筑环境是否会影响身体活动，或者活跃的人是否更喜欢生活在特定的建筑环境中。其次，来自公共卫生研究的研究也有类似的发现，这些研究使用了对自然环境的自我报告。这些结果可能会有偏差，因为运动的人更了解鼓励运动的设施（例如，公园、步行距离内的商店等）。