Might not be 100% one's fault or laziness, evidence suggests
When we breach our New Year or spring time resolutions to get regular physical exercise, eat healthy food, connect with neighbours and live healthier lives, we often blame ourselves. Yet, while individual will and other factors certainly play an important role, often the same can be said about the way our neighbourhood is designed. Some communities are built to make vegetable eating, physical activity, civic engagement and other healthy activities easy, attainable, even attractive choices—others simply aren’t. This 3-minute video clip illustrates the dichotomy.
Take walking, for example: why don’t most people walk? To what extent do the neighbourhoods they live in discourage them from walking? What are the characteristics of neighbourhoods that make walking enjoyable or difficult? Two recent Vancouver Foundation-funded studies help to answer these questions within the BC context.
In one of the studies, UBC researchers Brian Patterson and Meghan Winters, led by Bombardier Chair Dr. Larry Frank, found that people in Greater Vancouver or Greater Victoria who live in neighbourhoods with a grocery store within walking distance are nearly 50% more likely to get sufficient physical activity than residents of communities who have to drive to shop. A four-page summary of the study, which was conducted in partnership with Cora Craig of the Canadian Lifestyle and Fitness Research Institute, can be downloaded here, and the full report here.
The second study, by Dr. Ray Tomalty and Dr. Murtaza Haider, scored how walkable 16 urban and rural neighbourhoods were throughout BC, and compared them to physical activity and health data from the latest Provincial Health Services Authority’s “Health and Wellness Survey.” Their findings corroborate Dr. Frank’s, and suggest that the observations made by Dr. Frank and his team are likely to extend to communities throughout BC. The study and summary sheets can be found here.
In response to a growing body of research linking health and neighbourhood design, Smart Growth BC started to work in partnership with health professionals, land use planners, developers, peer organizations, and multiple levels of government to promote the building of communities that make “healthy choices, the easy choices.” More on these efforts will be posted on this blog in the next couple of weeks. In the meantime, if you are interested in getting involved or hearing more about it, feel free to send an e-mail to alice@smartgrowth.bc.ca. In the words of President Obama, “Yes, we can.”
Happy spring!
