Relationship between urban sprawl and weight of U.S. youth

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Reid Ewing, National Center for Smart Growth, University of Maryland, 1112J Preinkert Field House, College Park, MD 20742, 301-405-8751, rewing1@umd.edu, Ross C. Brownson, Department of Community Health and Prevention Research Center, Saint Louis University, 3545 Lafayette Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63104, and David Berrigan, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, Executive Plaza North MSC 7344, Bethesda, MD 20892-7344.

The prevalence of overweight and obesity has been on a steady rise among U.S. youth. The health effects of youth obesity are severe and lifelong.

To date, relationships between the built environment and body mass index (BMI) have not been evaluated for youth and have not been evaluated with longitudinal data. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (Rounds 1 through 7), we conducted both cross sectional and longitudinal studies of youth obesity. Hierarchical modeling was used to relate characteristics of individuals, households, and places to BMI. U.S. counties within metropolitan areas were the settings for this study. A county sprawl index, was the independent variable of interest. We controlled for a wide range of socioeconomic and behavioral covariates. In the cross sectional analysis, the likelihood of U.S. youth being overweight or at risk of overweight (at or above the 85th percentile relative to CDC growth charts) was associated with county sprawl (p = .023). The strength of the relationship was comparable to that previously reported for adults

In the longitudinal analyses, BMI growth curves for individual youth over the seven years of NLSY97, and BMI changes for individual youth who moved between counties, were not significantly related to county sprawl. It is unclear why these approaches give different results, but refined measures of urban form, better accounting for diet and physical activity, more consideration of residential preferences, and more complete control of individual and environmental influences on weight of youth might help explain these differences.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to

1. Summarize what was previously known about the relationship between the built environment and obesity (among adults).
2. Articulate new insights from this cross sectional and longitudinal study of sprawl and youth obesity.
3. List limitations of this and earlier research, and scope out new research that would help close knowledge gaps.

Keywords: Obesity, Youth

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered

Environmental, Community and Behavioral Approaches to Reduce Diabetes, Obesity and Asthma

The 134th Annual Meeting & Exposition (November 4-8, 2006) of APHA