Dataset Information

Longitudinal associations between perceptions of the neighbourhood environment and physical activity in adolescents: evidence from the Olympic Regeneration in East London (ORiEL) study.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Most UK adolescents do not achieve recommended levels of physical activity. Previous studies suggested that perceptions of the neighbourhood environment could contribute to explain differences in physical activity behaviours. We aimed to examine whether five measures of perceptions - perceived bus stop proximity, traffic safety, street connectivity, enjoyment of the neighbourhood for walking/cycling, and personal safety - were longitudinally associated with common forms of physical activity, namely walking to school, walking for leisure, and a composite measure of outdoor physical activity. We further aimed to investigate the moderating role of gender. METHODS:We used longitudinal data from the Olympic Regeneration in East London (ORiEL) study, a prospective cohort study. In 2012, 3106 adolescents aged 11 to 12 were recruited from 25 schools in 4 deprived boroughs of East London. Adolescents were followed-up in 2013 and 2014. The final sample includes 2260 adolescents surveyed at three occasions. We estimated logistic regression models using Generalised Estimating Equations to test the plausibility of hypotheses on the nature of the longitudinal associations (general association, cumulative effect, co-varying trajectories), adjusting for potential confounders. Item non-response was handled using multiple imputation. RESULTS:Longitudinal analyses indicate little evidence that perceptions of the neighbourhood are important predictors of younger adolescent physical activity. There was weak evidence that greater perceived proximity to bus stops is associated with a small decrease in the probability of walking for leisure. Results also indicate that poorer perception of personal safety decreases the probability of walking for leisure. There was some indication that better perception of street connectivity is associated with more outdoor physical activity. Finally, we found very little evidence that the associations between perceptions of the neighbourhood and physical activity differed by gender. CONCLUSIONS:This study suggests that younger adolescents' perceptions of their neighbourhood environment, and changes in these perceptions, did not consistently predict physical activity in a deprived and ethnically diverse urban population. Future studies should use situation-specific measures of the neighbourhood environment and physical activity to better capture the hypothesised processes and explore the relative roles of the objective environment, parental and adolescents' perceptions in examining differences in types of physical activity.

SUBMITTER: Berger N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6937816 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Longitudinal associations between perceptions of the neighbourhood environment and physical activity in adolescents: evidence from the Olympic Regeneration in East London (ORiEL) study.

Berger Nicolas N Lewis Daniel D Quartagno Matteo M Njagi Edmund Njeru EN Cummins Steven S

BMC public health 20191230 1

<h4>Background</h4>Most UK adolescents do not achieve recommended levels of physical activity. Previous studies suggested that perceptions of the neighbourhood environment could contribute to explain differences in physical activity behaviours. We aimed to examine whether five measures of perceptions - perceived bus stop proximity, traffic safety, street connectivity, enjoyment of the neighbourhood for walking/cycling, and personal safety - were longitudinally associated with common forms of phy ...[more]

PMID: 31888573

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Project description:While most adolescents do not achieve the recommended level of physical activity in the UK, the risk of physical inactivity varies across ethnic groups. We investigated whether own-group school and neighbourhood ethnic density can explain ethnic differences in adolescent physical activity. We used longitudinal data from the Olympic Regeneration in East London (ORiEL) study. In 2012, 3106 adolescents aged 11-12 were recruited from 25 schools in East London, UK. Adolescents were followed-up in 2013 and 2014. Own-group ethnic density was measured in 2012-2014 at school-level and in 2011 at neighbourhood-level, and calculated as the percentage of pupils/residents who were of the same ethnic group. Analyses were restricted to White British (n = 382), White Mixed (n = 190), Bangladeshi (n = 337), and Black African groups (n = 251). We estimated adjusted logistic regression models with generalised estimating equations for self-reported walking to school, walking for leisure, and outdoor physical activity. At school-level, there was consistent evidence that own-group ethnic density amplifies ethnic differences in walking to school. For each 10 percentage point increase in own-group ethnic density, there was evidence of increased probability of walking to school in Bangladeshi adolescents (OR = 1.20; 95% CI 1.09-1.31) and decreased probability of walking to school in Black African (OR = 0.58; 95% CI 0.45-0.75) and White Mixed adolescents (OR = 0.51; 95% CI 0.35-0.76). Associations with walking for leisure and outdoor physical activity were in expected directions but not consistently observed in all ethnic groups. At neighbourhood-level, evidence was more restricted. Amplification of ethnic differences was found for walking to school in Bangladeshi adolescents (OR = 1.31; 95% CI 1.14-1.51) and for outdoor physical activity in White British adolescents (OR = 0.85; 95% CI 0.76-0.94). Our results suggest that own-group ethnic density contributes to explaining differences in physical activity by amplifying ethnic differences in some forms of physical activity.

Project description:Recent systematic reviews suggest that there is a dearth of evidence on the effectiveness of large-scale urban regeneration programmes in improving health and well-being and alleviating health inequalities. The development of the Olympic Park in Stratford for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games provides the opportunity to take advantage of a natural experiment to examine the impact of large-scale urban regeneration on the health and well-being of young people and their families.A prospective school-based survey of adolescents (11-12 years) with parent data collected through face-to-face interviews at home. Adolescents will be recruited from six randomly selected schools in an area receiving large-scale urban regeneration (London Borough of Newham) and compared with adolescents in 18 schools in three comparison areas with no equivalent regeneration (London Boroughs of Tower Hamlets, Hackney and Barking & Dagenham). Baseline data will be completed prior to the start of the London Olympics (July 2012) with follow-up at 6 and 18 months postintervention. Primary outcomes are: pre-post change in adolescent and parent mental health and well-being, physical activity and parental employment status. Secondary outcomes include: pre-post change in social cohesion, smoking, alcohol use, diet and body mass index. The study will account for individual and environmental contextual effects in evaluating changes to identified outcomes. A nested longitudinal qualitative study will explore families' experiences of regeneration in order to unpack the process by which regeneration impacts on health and well-being.The study has approval from Queen Mary University of London Ethics Committee (QMREC2011/40), the Association of Directors of Children's Services (RGE110927) and the London Boroughs Research Governance Framework (CERGF113). Fieldworkers have had advanced Criminal Records Bureau clearance. Findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, national and international conferences, through participating schools and the study website (http://www.orielproject.co.uk).

Project description:BackgroundThe built environment can affect health behaviours, but longitudinal evidence is limited. We aimed to examine the effect of moving into East Village, the former London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games Athletes' Village that was repurposed on active design principles, on adult physical activity and adiposity.MethodsIn this cohort study, we recruited adults seeking new accommodation in East Village and compared physical activity and built environment measures with these data in control participants who had not moved to East Village. At baseline and after 2 years, we objectively measured physical activity with accelerometry and adiposity with body-mass index and bioimpedance, and we assessed objective measures of and participants' perceptions of change in their built environment. We examined the change in physical activity and adiposity between the East Village and control groups, after adjusting for sex, age group, ethnicity, housing tenure, and household (as a random effect).FindingsWe recruited participants for baseline assessment between Jan 24, 2013, and Jan 7, 2016, and we followed up the cohort after 2 years, between Feb 24, 2015, and Oct 24, 2017. At baseline, 1819 households (one adult per household) consented to initial contact by the study team. 1278 adults (16 years and older) from 1006 (55%) households participated at baseline; of these participants, 877 (69%) adults from 710 (71%) households were assessed after 2 years, of whom 441 (50%) participants from 343 (48%) households had moved to East Village. We found no effect associated with moving to East Village on daily steps, the time spent doing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (either in total or in 10-min bouts or more), daily sedentary time, body-mass index, or fat mass percentage between participants who had moved to East Village and those in the control group, despite sizeable improvements in walkability and neighbourhood perceptions of crime and quality among the East Village group relative to their original neighbourhood at baseline.InterpretationDespite large improvements in neighbourhood perceptions and walkability, we found no clear evidence that moving to East Village was associated with increased physical activity. Improving the built environment on its own might be insufficient to increase physical activity.FundingNational Institute for Health Research and National Prevention Research Initiative.

Project description:BackgroundInterventions to encourage active modes of travel (walking, cycling) may improve physical activity levels, but longitudinal evidence is limited and major change in the built environment / travel infrastructure may be needed. East Village (the former London 2012 Olympic Games Athletes Village) has been repurposed on active design principles with improved walkability, open space and public transport and restrictions on residential car parking. We examined the effect of moving to East Village on adult travel patterns.MethodsOne thousand two hundred seventy-eight adults (16+ years) seeking to move into social, intermediate, and market-rent East Village accommodation were recruited in 2013-2015, and followed up after 2 years. Individual objective measures of physical activity using accelerometry (ActiGraph GT3X+) and geographic location using GPS travel recorders (QStarz) were time-matched and a validated algorithm assigned four travel modes (walking, cycling, motorised vehicle, train). We examined change in time spent in different travel modes, using multilevel linear regresssion models adjusting for sex, age group, ethnicity, housing group (fixed effects) and household (random effect), comparing those who had moved to East Village at follow-up with those who did not.ResultsOf 877 adults (69%) followed-up, 578 (66%) provided valid accelerometry and GPS data for at least 1 day (≥540 min) at both time points; half had moved to East Village. Despite no overall effects on physical activity levels, sizeable improvements in walkability and access to public transport in East Village resulted in decreased daily vehicle travel (8.3 mins, 95%CI 2.5,14.0), particularly in the intermediate housing group (9.6 mins, 95%CI 2.2,16.9), and increased underground travel (3.9 mins, 95%CI 1.2,6.5), more so in the market-rent group (11.5 mins, 95%CI 4.4,18.6). However, there were no effects on time spent walking or cycling.ConclusionDesigning walkable neighbourhoods near high quality public transport and restrictions on car usage, may offer a community-wide strategy shift to sustainable transport modes by increasing public transport use, and reducing motor vehicle travel.

Project description:Researchers investigating relationships between the neighbourhood environment and health first need to decide on the spatial extent of the neighbourhood they are interested in. This decision is an important and ongoing methodological challenge since different methods of defining and delineating neighbourhood boundaries can produce different results. This paper explores this issue in the context of a New Zealand-based study of the relationship between the built environment and multiple measures of physical activity. Geographic information systems were used to measure three built environment attributes-dwelling density, street connectivity, and neighbourhood destination accessibility-using seven different neighbourhood definitions (three administrative unit boundaries, and 500, 800, 1000- and 1500-m road network buffers). The associations between the three built environment measures and five measures of physical activity (mean accelerometer counts per hour, percentage time in moderate-vigorous physical activity, self-reported walking for transport, self-reported walking for recreation and self-reported walking for all purposes) were modelled for each neighbourhood definition. The combination of the choice of neighbourhood definition, built environment measure, and physical activity measure determined whether evidence of an association was detected or not. Results demonstrated that, while there was no single ideal neighbourhood definition, the built environment was most consistently associated with a range of physical activity measures when the 800-m and 1000-m road network buffers were used. For the street connectivity and destination accessibility measures, associations with physical activity were less likely to be detected at smaller scales (less than 800 m). In line with some previous research, this study demonstrated that the choice of neighbourhood definition can influence whether or not an association between the built environment and adults' physical activity is detected or not. This study additionally highlighted the importance of the choice of built environment attribute and physical activity measures. While we identified the 800-m and 1000-m road network buffers as the neighbourhood definitions most consistently associated with a range of physical activity measures, it is important that researchers carefully consider the most appropriate type of neighbourhood definition and scale for the particular aim and participants, especially at smaller scales.

Dataset Information

Longitudinal associations between perceptions of the neighbourhood environment and physical activity in adolescents: evidence from the Olympic Regeneration in East London (ORiEL) study.

Publications

Longitudinal associations between perceptions of the neighbourhood environment and physical activity in adolescents: evidence from the Olympic Regeneration in East London (ORiEL) study.

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