Those
who say they have convenient places to walk or get other forms of exercise
are also the ones mostly likely to be physically active, according
to reports in this month’s American Journal of Health Promotion
and the American Journal of Public Health.
For instance, Georgia residents who said they had a safe, convenient place
to walk for exercise were those most likely to meet the current daily guidelines
for physical activity, say Kenneth E. Powell, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., and
colleagues of the Georgia Department of Human Resources.
“And there was a direct relation between the convenience of the
walking place and the proportion of people meeting current activity recommendations,” Powell
and colleagues say.
But fewer than 15 percent of people who usually walked at a public park,
a school track, gym or fitness center or shopping mall could walk to this
preferred area in less than 10 minutes, the researchers found.
Access to indoor and outdoor activity areas was also an important factor
in physical activity in North Carolina communities, according to Sara L.
Huston, Ph.D., of the University of North Carolina and colleagues. Residents
who said they had access to these areas or neighborhood trails were more
likely to get the recommended amount of physical activity.
American Indian and black residents, along with those with lower incomes
and less education, were more apt to live in places with limited access
to activity areas or fewer favorable neighborhood characteristics like
walking trails, sidewalks and safety from crime, say the researchers.
Another study suggests that increasing the number of desirable destinations
within a 20 minute-walk might encourage exercise among older women, who
are among the least active Americans.
Older women in Pittsburgh who lived within walking distance of a biking
or walking trail, park, department or discount store or hardware store
walked significantly more than those who did not have similar destinations
nearby.
In fact, the more destinations within walking distance, the more walking
the women did, according to Wendy C. King, B.S., of the University of Pittsburgh
and colleagues.
Interventions to boost exercise levels among older women
should recognize the importance of being able to make “utilitarian walking trips from
home,” King and colleagues say.
“Adding businesses or recreational facilities to residential areas
may be effective,” King says.
The King study was supported by the National Institutes of Health and
the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Support for the Huston study came from
the North Carolina Cardiovascular Health Data Unit and the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention. The Powell study was supported by the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention.
