IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v15y2018i6p1226-d151771.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Independent Associations between Walk Score ® and Neighborhood Socioeconomic Status, Waist Circumference, Waist-To-Hip Ratio and Body Mass Index Among Urban Adults

Author

Listed:
  • Gavin R. McCormack

    (Department of Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4Z6, Canada)

  • Anita Blackstaffe

    (Department of Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4Z6, Canada)

  • Alberto Nettel-Aguirre

    (Department of Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4Z6, Canada
    Department of Pediatrics, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T3B 6A8, Canada)

  • Ilona Csizmadi

    (Department of Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4Z6, Canada
    Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada)

  • Beverly Sandalack

    (Faculty of Environmental Design, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada)

  • Francisco Alaniz Uribe

    (Faculty of Environmental Design, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada)

  • Afrah Rayes

    (Urban Design and Heritage, City of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2P 2M5, Canada)

  • Christine Friedenreich

    (Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
    Department of Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Research, CancerControl Alberta, Alberta Health Services, Calgary, AB T2S 3C3, Canada)

  • Melissa L. Potestio

    (Department of Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4Z6, Canada)

Abstract

Background : Environmental and policy factors can influence weight status via facilitating or discouraging physical activity and healthy diet. Despite mixed evidence, some findings suggest that the neighborhood built environment, including “walkability”, is associated with overweight and obesity. Most of these findings have measured body mass index (BMI), yet other weight status measures including waist circumference (WC) and waist-to-hip (W-H) ratio are also predictive of health outcomes, independent of BMI. Our study aim was to estimate the associations between walkability, measured using Walk Score ® , and each of WC, W-H ratio, and BMI among urban Canadian adults. Methods : In 2014, n = 851 adults recruited from 12 structurally and socioeconomic diverse neighborhoods (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) provided complete data on a physical activity, health and demographic questionnaire and self-reported anthropometric measures (i.e., height and weight, WC and hip circumference). Anthropometric data were used to estimate WC, W-H ratio, and BMI which were categorized into low and high risk in relation to their potential adverse effect on health. WC and BMI were also combined to provide a proxy measure of both overall and abdominal adiposity. Multivariable logistic regression models estimated odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for associations between each weight status outcome and Walk Score ® . Results : A one-unit increase in Walk Score ® was associated with lower odds of being high-risk based on WC (OR = 0.99; 95%CI 0.97–0.99). Notably, those residing in socioeconomically disadvantage neighborhoods had significantly higher odds of being high risk based on WC, BMI, and WC-BMI combined compared with advantaged neighborhoods. Conclusions : Interventions that promote healthy weight through the design of neighborhoods that support and enhance the effect of physical activity and diet-related interventions could have a significant population health impact.

Suggested Citation

  • Gavin R. McCormack & Anita Blackstaffe & Alberto Nettel-Aguirre & Ilona Csizmadi & Beverly Sandalack & Francisco Alaniz Uribe & Afrah Rayes & Christine Friedenreich & Melissa L. Potestio, 2018. "The Independent Associations between Walk Score ® and Neighborhood Socioeconomic Status, Waist Circumference, Waist-To-Hip Ratio and Body Mass Index Among Urban Adults," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-15, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:15:y:2018:i:6:p:1226-:d:151771
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/6/1226/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/6/1226/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Betina Højgaard & Dorte Gyrd-Hansen & Kim Rose Olsen & Jes Søgaard & Thorkild I A Sørensen, 2008. "Waist Circumference and Body Mass Index as Predictors of Health Care Costs," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 3(7), pages 1-7, July.
    2. Ferdinand, A.O. & Sen, B. & Rahurkar, S. & Engler, S. & Menachemi, N., 2012. "The relationship between built environments and physical activity: A systematic review," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 102(10), pages 7-13.
    3. Hruby, A. & Manson, J.E. & Qi, L. & Malik, V.S. & Rimm, E.B. & Sun, Q. & Willett, W.C. & Hu, F.B., 2016. "Determinants and consequences of obesity," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 106(9), pages 1656-1662.
    4. Ball, Kylie & Crawford, David, 2005. "Socioeconomic status and weight change in adults: a review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 60(9), pages 1987-2010, May.
    5. Powell, L.M. & Slater, S. & Chaloupka, F.J. & Harper, D., 2006. "Availability of physical activity-related facilities and neighborhood demographic and socioeconomic characteristics: A national study," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 96(9), pages 1676-1680.
    6. Hirsch, J.A. & Roux, A.V.D. & Moore, K.A. & Evenson, K.R. & Rodriguez, D.A., 2014. "Change in walking and body mass index following residential relocation: The multi-ethnic study of atherosclerosis," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 104(3), pages 49-56.
    7. Ross, N.A. & Tremblay, S. & Khan, S. & Crouse, D. & Tremblay, M. & Berthelot, J.-M., 2007. "Body mass index in urban Canada: Neighborhood and metropolitan area effects," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 97(3), pages 500-508.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Eun Jung Kim & Jiyeong Kim & Hyunjung Kim, 2020. "Neighborhood Walkability and Active Transportation: A Correlation Study in Leisure and Shopping Purposes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-16, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Stephanie A. Prince & Elizabeth A. Kristjansson & Katherine Russell & Jean-Michel Billette & Michael Sawada & Amira Ali & Mark S. Tremblay & Denis Prud’homme, 2011. "A Multilevel Analysis of Neighbourhood Built and Social Environments and Adult Self-Reported Physical Activity and Body Mass Index in Ottawa, Canada," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 8(10), pages 1-26, October.
    2. Sund, Erik Reidar & Jones, Andy & Midthjell, Kristian, 2010. "Individual, family, and area predictors of BMI and BMI change in an adult Norwegian population: Findings from the HUNT study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 70(8), pages 1194-1202, April.
    3. Sékou Samadoulougou & Laurence Letarte & Alexandre Lebel, 2022. "Association between Neighbourhood Deprivation Trajectories and Self-Perceived Health: Analysis of a Linked Survey and Health Administrative Data," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-14, December.
    4. Hamdi Lemamsha & Chris Papadopoulos & Gurch Randhawa, 2018. "Perceived Environmental Factors Associated with Obesity in Libyan Men and Women," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-16, February.
    5. Sarma, Sisira & Zaric, Gregory S. & Campbell, M. Karen & Gilliland, Jason, 2014. "The effect of physical activity on adult obesity: Evidence from the Canadian NPHS panel," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 14(C), pages 1-21.
    6. Umberson, Debra & Liu, Hui & Mirowsky, John & Reczek, Corinne, 2011. "Parenthood and trajectories of change in body weight over the life course," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 73(9), pages 1323-1331.
    7. Tyler Prochnow & Meg Patterson & M. Renée Umstattd Meyer & Joseph Lightner & Luis Gomez & Joseph Sharkey, 2022. "Conducting Physical Activity Research on Racially and Ethnically Diverse Adolescents Using Social Network Analysis: Case Studies for Practical Use," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-16, September.
    8. Baum II, Charles L. & Ruhm, Christopher J., 2009. "Age, socioeconomic status and obesity growth," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 635-648, May.
    9. Sisira Sarma & Rose Anne Devlin & Jason Gilliland & M. Karen Campbell & Gregory S. Zaric, 2015. "The Effect of Leisure‐Time Physical Activity on Obesity, Diabetes, High BP and Heart Disease Among Canadians: Evidence from 2000/2001 to 2005/2006," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(12), pages 1531-1547, December.
    10. Steffen Andreas Schüle & Gabriele Bolte, 2015. "Interactive and Independent Associations between the Socioeconomic and Objective Built Environment on the Neighbourhood Level and Individual Health: A Systematic Review of Multilevel Studies," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(4), pages 1-31, April.
    11. Gomez, Luis F. & Sarmiento, Rodrigo & Ordoñez, Maria Fernanda & Pardo, Carlos Felipe & de Sá, Thiago Hérick & Mallarino, Christina H. & Miranda, J. Jaime & Mosquera, Janeth & Parra, Diana C. & Reis, R, 2015. "Urban environment interventions linked to the promotion of physical activity: A mixed methods study applied to the urban context of Latin America," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 18-30.
    12. Yang, Yongjiang & Sasaki, Kuniaki & Cheng, Long & Tao, Sui, 2022. "Does the built environment matter for active travel among older adults: Insights from Chiba City, Japan," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    13. María A. González-Álvarez & Angelina Lázaro-Alquézar & María Blanca Simón-Fernández, 2020. "Global Trends in Child Obesity: Are Figures Converging?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-20, December.
    14. Black, Nicole & Johnston, David W. & Propper, Carol & Shields, Michael A., 2019. "The effect of school sports facilities on physical activity, health and socioeconomic status in adulthood," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 220(C), pages 120-128.
    15. Ullmann, S. Heidi & Goldman, Noreen & Pebley, Anne R., 2013. "Contextual factors and weight change over time: A comparison between U.S. Hispanics and other population sub-groups," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 40-48.
    16. Hyungun Sung & Sugie Lee & Sungwon Jung, 2014. "Identifying the Relationship between the Objectively Measured Built Environment and Walking Activity in the High-Density and Transit-Oriented City, Seoul, Korea," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 41(4), pages 637-660, August.
    17. Gavin R. McCormack & Levi Frehlich & Anita Blackstaffe & Tanvir C. Turin & Patricia K. Doyle-Baker, 2020. "Active and Fit Communities. Associations between Neighborhood Walkability and Health-Related Fitness in Adults," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-12, February.
    18. Ingunn Holden Bergh & Øivind Skare & Annalena Aase & Knut-Inge Klepp & Nanna Lien, 2016. "Weight development from age 13 to 30 years and adolescent socioeconomic status: The Norwegian Longitudinal Health Behaviour study," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 61(4), pages 465-473, May.
    19. Xiaoqi Feng & Zhiqiang Feng & Thomas Astell-Burt, 2017. "Perceived public transport infrastructure modifies the association between public transport use and mental health: Multilevel analyses from the United Kingdom," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(8), pages 1-17, August.
    20. Brewer, Mackenzie & Kimbro, Rachel Tolbert, 2014. "Neighborhood context and immigrant children's physical activity," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 1-9.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:15:y:2018:i:6:p:1226-:d:151771. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.