Physical Activity, Nutrition & Built Environment in a Bi-national Border Setting

描述（由申请人提供） 最近肥胖症的急剧增加发生得比个体生理或遗传组成的变化所能合理解释的更快，指出环境的变化可能是促成因素。 人们生活和工作的物理环境的设计和建筑，建筑环境被怀疑是肥胖的一个因素，因为它促进了活动的减少和食物摄入的增加。 然而，现有的研究已经调查了个人居住的整体建筑环境的性质，并将该环境的特征与个人报告的整体行为联系起来。 它不将实际的环境特征与实际的真实的时间行为相关联。 此外，环境的性质与选择占据环境的个人的性质相混淆，通常在社会经济地位，种族等方面有所不同。 拟议项目是一项探索性研究，旨在开发方法和分析技术，以解决建筑环境与能源平衡的关系。 所开发的方法将被用来调查的真实的时间关系的实际行为的特性的确切环境中的行为发生。 该项目将开发一种方法，用三轴加速计和7天饮食日记凭经验评估摄入量和活动，同时用全球定位系统数据记录接收器监测个人的确切位置。 将访问地理信息系统（GIS）数据库，以确定实际行为点的建筑环境特征。 该项目将开发一种方法，以确定建筑环境的特征如何与摄入量和活动相关。 它将开发一种方法来确定同一个人如何对不同的环境特征作出反应。 它将开发一种方法来确定个人的特征如何与建筑环境相互作用，以影响摄入量和活动。 它将开始在广泛的环境中探索活动，摄入量和建筑环境的关系。 肥胖症的流行对公众健康构成重大威胁。 通过确定建筑环境如何有助于摄入和活动，拟议的研究应有助于更好地了解肥胖的原因以及预防和治疗的途径。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant) The recent dramatic increase in obesity has occurred more rapidly than can reasonably be explained by a change in physiological or genetic makeup of the individual, pointing to changes in the environment as likely contributors. The design and architecture of the physical environments where people live and work, the built environment has been suspected as a contributor to obesity by promoting a reduction in activity and an increase in food intake. The existing research, though, has investigated the nature of the overall built environment in which the individual resides and relates the characteristics of that environment to the individual's reported overall behavior. It does not relate actual environmental features to actual real time behaviors. Also, the nature of the environment is confounded with the nature of the individuals who choose to occupy the environment, often differing in socioeconomic status, race etc. Finally prior research has investigated environments that do not have a large range of variation. The proposed project is an exploratory study to develop the methodology and analytic techniques to address the relationship of the built environment to energy balance. The developed methods will then be employed to investigate the real time relationships of actual behavior to the characteristics of the exact environment in which the behavior occurs. The project will develop a method for assessing intake and activity empirically with triaxial accelerometers and 7-day diet diaries while monitoring the individuals' exact positions with Global Positioning System (GPS) data logging receivers. Geographical Information System (GIS) data bases will be accessed to establish the characteristics of the built environment at the point of the actual behavior. The project will develop a method to identify how the characteristics of the built environment are related to intake and activity. It will develop a method to ascertain how the same individual responds to different environmental characteristics. It will develop a method to ascertain how characteristics of the individual interact with the built environment to affect intake and activity. It will begin to explore activity, intake and built environment relationships in a wide range of environments. The epidemic of obesity is posing a significant danger to public health. By identifying how the built environment may be contributing to intake and activity, the proposed research should lead to a better understanding of the causes of obesity and routes for prevention and treatment.