Background
GIS-based walkability measures designed to explain active travel fail to capture “playability”
and proximity to healthy food. These constructs should be considered when measuring
potential child obesogenic environments.
Purpose
The aim of this study was to describe the development of GIS-based multicomponent
physical activity and nutrition environment indicators of child obesogenic environments
in the San Diego and Seattle regions.
Methods
Block group–level walkability (street connectivity, residential density, land-use
mix, and retail floor area ratio) measures were constructed in each region. Multiple
sources were used to enumerate parks (∼900–1600 per region) and food establishments
(∼10,000 per region). Physical activity environments were evaluated on the basis of
walkability and presence and quality of parks. Nutrition environments were evaluated
based on presence and density of fast-food restaurants and distance to supermarkets.
Four neighborhood types were defined using high/low cut points for physical activity
and nutrition environments defined through an iterative process dependent on regional
counts of fast-food outlets and overall distance to parks and grocery stores from
census block groups where youth live.
Results
To identify sufficient numbers of children aged 6–11 years, high physical activity
environment block groups had at least one high-quality park within 0.25 miles and
were above median walkability, whereas low physical activity environment groups had
no parks and were below median walkability. High nutrition environment block groups
had a supermarket within 0.5 miles, and fewer than 16 (Seattle) and 31 (San Diego)
fast-food restaurants within 0.5 miles. Low nutrition environments had either no supermarket,
or a supermarket and more than 16 (Seattle) and 31 (San Diego) fast-food restaurants
within 0.5 miles. Income, educational attainment, and ethnicity varied across physical
activity and nutrition environments.
Conclusions
These approaches to defining neighborhood environments can be used to study physical
activity, nutrition, and obesity outcomes. Findings presented in a companion paper
validate these GIS methods for measuring obesogenic environments.
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© 2012 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
