242543 Relationship between neighborhood characteristics and prevalence of obesity in adolescents with disabilities

Wednesday, November 2, 2011: 8:30 AM

Edward Wang, PhD , Disability and Human Development, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL
James Rimmer, PhD , Occupational Therapy, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
Kiyoshi Yamaki, PhD , Department of Disability and Human Development, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL
Brienne Davis, MPH , Departement of Disability and Human Development, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL
A successful approach to reducing child obesity and its comorbidities must embrace understanding of community-level factors including the social, built, and natural environments. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between neighborhood characteristics and prevalence of obesity in adolescents with disabilities. A national sample of 742 parents and their children aged 12-18 yrs with a physical or cognitive disability completed an online survey on health, lifestyles, and community accessibility. The majority of youth were male (64%), White (83%), overweight or obese (67%) with a mean age of 14.9±2.1 (yr). 32% of subjects used wheelchair. The most frequent primary disability types included autism (23%), cerebral palsy (17%), intellectual disability (13%), and Down syndrome (12%). 67% and 40% of participants also reported having a 2nd and 3rd cause of disability, respectively. One-third of parents were somewhat (19%) or very much (14%) concerned about crime in the area in which they live. Almost 65% of parents were either somewhat (25%) or very much (38%) concerned about traffic safety in their neighborhoods. There were small but positive correlations between parent's level of concern about neighborhood crime and child's BMI (r=0.09, p=0.01) and ‘time teen spends on computer on typical school days' (r=0.07, p=0.05). Not surprising, child BMI was also positively correlated with self-reported hours spent watching TV (r=0.11, p=0.02) and playing video games (r=0.18, p=0.002). The constraints of neighborhood characteristics attributed to sedentary lifestyles may be an important factor in the higher prevalence of obesity in adolescent with disabilities.

Learning Areas:
Environmental health sciences
Other professions or practice related to public health
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related public policy
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
1. Evaluate the effects of neighborhood characteristics on the prevalence of obesity in adolescents with disabilities 2. Identify environmental factors associated with sedentary lifestyles in adolescents with disabilities

Keywords: Disability, Obesity

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a co-investigator of the obesity reduction in adolescents with disabilities study
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.