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Over the past forty years various changes in the U.S. "built environment" have promoted sedentary lifestyles and less healthful diets. James Sallis and Karen Glanz investigate whether these changes have had a direct effect on childhood obesity and whether improvements to encourage more physical activity and more healthful diets are likely to lower rates of childhood obesity. Researchers, say Sallis and Glanz, have found many links between the built environment and children's physical activity, but they have yet to find conclusive evidence that aspects of the built environment promote obesity. For example, certain development patterns, such as a lack of sidewalks, long distances to schools, and the need to cross busy streets, discourage walking and biking to school. Eliminating such barriers can increase rates of active commuting. But researchers cannot yet prove that more active commuting would reduce rates of obesity. Sallis and Glanz note that recent changes in the nutrition environment, including greater reliance on convenience foods and fast foods, a lack of access to fruits and vegetables, and expanding portion sizes, are also widely believed to contribute to the epidemic of childhood obesity. But again, conclusive evidence that changes in the nutrition environment will reduce rates of obesity does not yet exist. Research into the link between the built environment and childhood obesity is still in its infancy. Analysts do not know whether changes in the built environment have increased rates of obesity or whether improvements to the built environment will decrease them. Nevertheless, say Sallis and Glanz, the policy implications are clear. People who have access to safe places to be active, neighborhoods that are walkable, and local markets that offer healthful food are likely to be more active and to eat more healthful food—two types of behavior that can lead to good health and may help avoid obesity.

[Extract] In February and March 2022, China will host the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The vision for this landmark event promises a "joyful rendezvous upon pure ice and snow uniting the passion of hundreds of millions for winter sports".1 Themes have been developed to create a positive environmental impact with new development for the northern region of the country and to promote winter sports and improve the health and well-being of the Chinese people. The key messages for the winter games include inspiring youth with the Olympic spirit and encouraging millions to embrace winter sports. Notably, the Chinese government aims to mobilize at least 300 million of its citizens to engage in winter sports as an outcome of hosting the Winter Olympic Games.

Purpose. This study investigated the variance in sitting, walking, and moderate and vigorous physical activity explained by neighborhood design and recreational environmental variables above and beyond the variance accounted for by individual demographic variables. Design. Cross-sectional analyses of self-reported survey data. Setting. A random sample of inhabitants of Ghent, Belgium, aged 18–65 years, was drawn. Subjects. Five hundred twenty-one adults completed questionnaires (52.1% response rate). The average age of the sample was 41 years, and 48.2% were female. Measures. A questionnaire developed to assess neighborhood design and recreational environmental variables with a total of 81 items was administered. The environmental questionnaire showed acceptable to good reliability and acceptable validity. The previously validated International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) was used to quantify physical activity in the past 7 days. Additional demographic information was also obtained. Results. Regression analyses showed that environmental variables were related to all types of physical activity in both sexes. However, the range of variance explained by the models including demographic and environmental variables was low, only 5% to 13%. Minutes of walking and of moderate-intensity activity were related to quality of sidewalks and accessibility of shopping and public transportation. Vigorous physical activity was related to presence of activity supplies in the home and number of convenient activity facilities outside the home. Conclusions. Both neighborhood design and recreational environment variables had small but significant associations with multiple types of physical activity in a sample of Belgian adults.

Purpose. Health promotion policy frameworks, recent theorizing, and research all emphasize understanding and mobilizing environmental influences to change particular health-related behaviors in specific settings. The workplace is a key environmental setting. The Checklist of Health Promotion Environments at Worksites (CHEW) was designed as a direct observation instrument to assess characteristics of worksite environments that are known to influence health-related behaviors. Methods. The CHEW is a 112-item checklist of workplace environmental features hypothesized to be associated, both positively and negatively, with physical activity, healthy eating, alcohol consumption, and smoking. The three environmental domains assessed are (1) physical characteristics of the worksite, (2) features of the information environment, and (3) characteristics of the immediate neighborhood around the workplace. The conceptual rationale and development studies for the CHEW are described, and data from observational studies of 20 worksites are reported. Results. The data on CHEW-derived environmental attributes showed generally good reliability and identified meaningful sets of variables that plausibly may influence health-related behaviors. With the exception of one information environment attribute, intraclass correlation coefficients ranged from 0.80 to 1.00. Descriptive statistics on selected physical and information environment characteristics indicated that vending machines, showers, bulletin boards, and signs prohibiting smoking were common across worksites. Bicycle racks, visible stairways, and signs related to alcohol consumption, nutrition, and health promotion were relatively uncommon. Conclusions. These findings illustrate the types of data on environmental attributes that can be derived, their relevance for program planning, and how they can characterize variability across worksites. The CHEW is a promising observational measure that has the potential to assess environmental influences on health behaviors and to evaluate workplace health promotion programs.

Purpose. The present study was grounded in the notion that previously identified physical activity determinants were associated in reverse with television viewing. Identifying demographic and psychosocial correlates and other potential determinants of television viewing may allow for the development and conceptualization of models and interventions to reduce sedentary behavior. Design. Cross-sectional data from self-report measures were analyzed using multiple hierarchical regression. Setting. Data were collected from 1995 to 1996 on seniors attending a large public university in southern California. Sample. Subjects were 321 female and 255 male university seniors attending a public university in southern California. The sample's ethnic distribution was 53.8% European-American, 16.3% Latino, 16.6% Asian/Pacific Islander, 16.1% African-American, and 4.3% other. Measures. Typical television viewing practices on weekdays and weekends were assessed using self-report items. Physical activity determinants were assessed using self-report measures derived from social cognitive theory and the transtheoretical model of behavior change. Results. The variables explaining a significant amount of variance after controlling for ethnicity and employment status in females were barriers to physical activity (p < . 05), body image dissatisfaction (p < .01), and processes of change (p < .02). The entire model for females captured 16% of the variance, with the psychosocial variables accounting for 8% of the variance. The significant variables in the male model were quality of life (p < . 01) and grade point average (p < .03). The full model accounted for 15% of the variance, with nondemographic variables accounting for 5% of the variance in television viewing. Conclusions. Relationships between television viewing and potential determinants were found. However, additional variables that may influence the amount of television viewing need to be conceptualized and investigated.

Purpose. Evidence on environmental correlates of physical activity (PA) conducted in Western developed countries may not be generalizable to Africa. This study examined the associations between perception of the neighborhood environment and PA and walking in African young adults. Design. Cross-sectional analysis of self-reported survey. Setting. University of Ibadan, in the capital city of Oyo State, Nigeria. Subjects. A representative sample of undergraduates of a Nigerian university, age 16 to 39 years and 50.7% female. Measures. Total walking activity and PA were measured with the short version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Sixteen perceived neighborhood environmental variables were measured using the Physical Activity Neighborhood Environment Scale (PANES), which was used to assess environmental correlates of PA that are internationally relevant. Outcomes were meeting health-related guidelines for sufficient PA and walking activity. Results. After adjustments for demographics and dormitory site, the proximity of bus/transit stop (odds ratio [OR] = 1.41), traffic as not a problem (OR = .45; unexpected direction), and not many four-way intersections (OR = .72; unexpected direction) were significantly associated with sufficient PA. Low crime rate at night (OR = 1.53), many interesting things to look at (OR = 1.90), and seeing many people active (OR = .59; unexpected direction) were significantly associated with sufficient walking. Inconsistent patterns were also observed in gender-specific analyses. Conclusion. Few neighborhood environment correlates of PA or walking reported in the international literature were replicated with African young adults. Environmental measures need to be developed that are tailored to low- and middle-income countries, such as those in Africa, so that research in understudied regions can advance. (Am J Health Promot 2011;25[5]:e10-e19.)

Purpose. To examine associations of neighborhood walkability and recreation environment variables with physical activity in adolescents. Methods. The cross-sectional study was conducted with 98 white or Mexican-American adolescents (mean age = 16.2 years). Physical activity was measured with 7 days of accelerometer monitoring. Height and weight were measured to compute body mass index (BMI). Environmental measures were created using geographic information systems. A neighborhood walkability index was based on land use mix, retail density, street connectivity, and residential density. Proximity to public and private recreation facilities was assessed. Results. In a linear regression, the walkability index within 0.5 mile of homes was related to minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity, explaining approximately 4% of variance. Recreation variables were not related to physical activity, and BMI was not explained by environmental variables. Conclusion. Neighborhood walkability was related to adolescents' physical activity, similar to findings for adults.

Purpose. Neighborhood built environments are related to obesity and physical activity (PA), but inconsistently to sedentary behaviors. This study investigated the mediating effects of PA and sedentary time on the associations of neighborhood environmental factors and body mass index (BMI) among Nigerian adults. Design. The study design was cross-sectional. Setting. The study setting was metropolitan Maiduguri, Nigeria. Subjects. Nigerian adults (n = 1411) were randomly selected from diverse neighborhoods and had complete data (43.1% women, 33.8% overweight or obese). Measures. PA, sedentary time, and 16 perceived neighborhood environmental factors were measured using Nigerian adaptations of validated international questionnaires. Outcomes were measured BMI and interviewer-led self-reports of moderate to vigorous PA, walking, total PA, and sitting time. Analysis. The product-of-coefficient test using generalized linear models was used to assess the mediating effects of outcomes on the associations between environmental factors and BMI. Results. Walking and total PA significantly mediated the association between BMI and perception of higher residential density (αβ = –.025 and –.037, respectively), absence of garbage (αβ = –.046 and –.076, respectively), and more safety from crime at night (αβ = –.044 and –.083, respectively). In addition, walking, moderate to vigorous PA, and total PA significantly mediated the association between BMI and perception of better aesthetics (αβ = –.035, –.022, and –.071, respectively). Sedentary time was not a significant mediator of any associations between environmental factors and BMI. Conclusion. The association of several neighborhood environmental variables with BMI was partially mediated by PA in Nigerian adults. Including questions on specific types of sedentary behaviors in future prospective studies may improve understanding of the relative influence of sedentary behavior and physical activity on obesity control and prevention among sub-Saharan African adults.

Purpose. Examine associations between worksite physical activity promotion strategies and employees' physical activity and sedentary behaviors. Design. Cross-sectional. Setting. Seattle–King County, Washington and Baltimore, Maryland–Washington, D.C. regions. Subjects. Adults working outside the home (n = 1313). Mean age was 45 ± 10 years, 75.8% of participants were non-Hispanic white, 56% were male, and 51% had income ≥$70,000/year. Measures. Participants reported demographic characteristics and presence/absence of nine physical activity promotion environment and policy strategies in their work environment (e.g., showers, lockers, physical activity programs). A worksite physical activity promotion index was a tally of strategies. Total sedentary and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) min/d were objectively assessed via 7-day accelerometry. Total job-related physical activity minutes and recreational physical activity minutes were self-reported with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Analysis. Mixed-effects models and generalized estimating equations evaluated the association of the worksite promotion index with physical activity and sedentary behavior, adjusting for demographics. Results. A higher worksite promotion index was significantly associated with higher total sedentary behavior (β = 3.97), MVPA (β = 1.04), recreational physical activity (β = 1.1 and odds ratio = 1.39; away from work and at work, respectively) and negatively with job-related physical activity (β = .90). Conclusions. Multiple worksite physical activity promotion strategies based on environmental supports and policies may increase recreational physical activity and should be evaluated in controlled trials. These findings are particularly important given the increasingly sedentary nature of employment. (Am J Health Promot 2011;25[4]:264–271.)