TUESDAY, March 25 (HealthDay News) -- Your neighborhood may have
a major influence on how much you exercise, according to a study
that looked at data on 8,782 people in 373 Chicago
neighborhoods.
The researchers found that people who live in neighborhoods with
higher levels of poverty, lower levels of education, and more
families headed by women are less likely than others to exercise.
But this doesn't mean that poorer people are least likely to
exercise, said the researchers, who found that individual income
wasn't as important as neighborhood in determining exercise
levels.
"We can't encourage people to exercise more without looking at
the neighborhood environment in which they live," study co-author
Christopher Browning, an associate professor of sociology at Ohio
State University, said in a prepared statement. "Some people may
have the personal resources and desire to exercise but don't live
in a neighborhood in which they feel comfortable to go outside for
activities."
Neighborhood-related factors that influenced exercise levels
included: amount of trust among neighbors, perceived violence in
the community, and beliefs that neighbors help each other. The
study also found that neighborhood was more important for women
than men in determining exercise levels.
Overall, the findings suggested that a wide variety of social
and economic factors outside of a person's control can have an
impact on physical activity, Browning said.
The study was published in a recent issue of
Urban Studies.
The finding that neighborhood characteristics are more important
than a person's income in determining exercise levels was
surprising and noteworthy, Browning said.
"The result is surprising enough that it needs to be confirmed
by other studies. But if the finding is substantiated, it would
show just how important neighborhoods are, and would have important
implications for any new initiatives aimed at enhancing health and
well-being," he said.
The fact that the neighborhood/exercise connection is stronger
in women than in men is another important finding.
"This could help understand why African-American women have much
higher obesity rates than other groups," Browning said.
More information
The U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute offers a
guide to physical activity.
