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      Built Environment Influences of Children’s Physical Activity: Examining Differences by Neighbourhood Size and Sex

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          Abstract

          Neighbourhoods can facilitate or constrain moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among children by providing or restricting opportunities for MVPA. However, there is no consensus on how to define a child’s neighbourhood. This study examines the influence of the neighbourhood built environment on objectively measured MVPA among 435 children (aged 9–14 years) in London (ON, Canada). As there is no consensus on how to delineate a child’s neighbourhood, a geographic information system was used to generate measures of the neighbourhood built environment at two buffer sizes (500 m and 800 m) around each child’s home. Linear regression models with robust standard errors (cluster) were used to analyze the relationship between built environment characteristics and average daily MVPA during non-school hours on weekdays. Sex-stratified models assessed sex-specific relationships. When accounting for individual and neighbourhood socio-demographic variables, park space and multi-use path space were found to influence children’s MVPA. Sex-stratified models found significant associations between MVPA and park space, with the 800 m buffer best explaining boys’ MVPA and the 500 m buffer best explaining girls’ MVPA. Findings emphasize that, when designing built environments, programs, and policies to facilitate physical activity, it is important to consider that the size of the neighbourhood influencing a child’s physical activity may differ according to sex.

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          Systematic review of the health benefits of physical activity and fitness in school-aged children and youth

          Background The purpose was to: 1) perform a systematic review of studies examining the relation between physical activity, fitness, and health in school-aged children and youth, and 2) make recommendations based on the findings. Methods The systematic review was limited to 7 health indicators: high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, the metabolic syndrome, obesity, low bone density, depression, and injuries. Literature searches were conducted using predefined keywords in 6 key databases. A total of 11,088 potential papers were identified. The abstracts and full-text articles of potentially relevant papers were screened to determine eligibility. Data was abstracted for 113 outcomes from the 86 eligible papers. The evidence was graded for each health outcome using established criteria based on the quantity and quality of studies and strength of effect. The volume, intensity, and type of physical activity were considered. Results Physical activity was associated with numerous health benefits. The dose-response relations observed in observational studies indicate that the more physical activity, the greater the health benefit. Results from experimental studies indicate that even modest amounts of physical activity can have health benefits in high-risk youngsters (e.g., obese). To achieve substantive health benefits, the physical activity should be of at least a moderate intensity. Vigorous intensity activities may provide even greater benefit. Aerobic-based activities had the greatest health benefit, other than for bone health, in which case high-impact weight bearing activities were required. Conclusion The following recommendations were made: 1) Children and youth 5-17 years of age should accumulate an average of at least 60 minutes per day and up to several hours of at least moderate intensity physical activity. Some of the health benefits can be achieved through an average of 30 minutes per day. [Level 2, Grade A]. 2) More vigorous intensity activities should be incorporated or added when possible, including activities that strengthen muscle and bone [Level 3, Grade B]. 3) Aerobic activities should make up the majority of the physical activity. Muscle and bone strengthening activities should be incorporated on at least 3 days of the week [Level 2, Grade A].
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            The Uncertain Geographic Context Problem

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              The effect of season and weather on physical activity: a systematic review.

              This study reviewed previous studies to explore the effect of season, and consequently weather, on levels of physical activity. Thirty-seven primary studies (published 1980-2006) representing a total of 291883 participants (140482 male and 152085 female) from eight different countries are described, and the effect of season on moderate levels of physical activity is considered. Upon review of the evidence, it appears that levels of physical activity vary with seasonality, and the ensuing effect of poor or extreme weather has been identified as a barrier to participation in physical activity among various populations. Therefore, previous studies that did not recognize the effect of weather and season on physical activity may, in fact, be poor representations of this behaviour. Future physical activity interventions should consider how weather promotes or hinders such behaviour. Providing indoor opportunities during the cold and wet months may foster regular physical activity behaviours year round.
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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                Role: Academic Editor
                Role: Academic Editor
                Role: Academic Editor
                Journal
                Int J Environ Res Public Health
                Int J Environ Res Public Health
                ijerph
                International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
                MDPI
                1661-7827
                1660-4601
                15 January 2016
                January 2016
                : 13
                : 1
                : 130
                Affiliations
                Department of Geography, Western University, 1151 Richmond St., London, ON N6A 5C2, Canada; cmitch57@ 123456uwo.ca (C.A.M.); aclark2@ 123456uwo.ca (A.F.C.)
                Author notes
                [* ]Correspondence: jgillila@ 123456uwo.ca ; Tel.: +1-519-661-2111
                [†]

                These authors contributed equally to this work.

                Article
                ijerph-13-00130
                10.3390/ijerph13010130
                4730521
                26784212
                913e7415-ac65-4086-9640-b5ab99d87cad
                © 2016 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

                This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons by Attribution (CC-BY) license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

                History
                : 15 November 2015
                : 12 January 2016
                Categories
                Article

                Public health
                built environment,accelerometer,gis,physical activity,neighbourhood,child
                Public health
                built environment, accelerometer, gis, physical activity, neighbourhood, child

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