Associations between Walk Score and Physical Activity in Overweight and Obese Women

Abstract

PURPOSE: To examine the associations between the neighborhood Walk Score (WSc) and physical activity (PA) outcomes in a group of young, overweight/obese suburban and urban women. METHODS: Project Health included 48 overweight/obese black or white young women (BMI, 31.2 ± 3.7 kg/m2; age, 26.7 ± 4.6 years; 60% black) living in the metropolitan Boston area. An ActiGraph GT3X+ accelerometer (valid day and time defined as ≥ 8 hrs wear time on ≥ 3 days) was used to estimate mean steps/day and time (mins/day) in light PA (LPA; 100-2019 cpm) and moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA; ≥760 cpm). WSc measured the walkability of a participant’s home street address by analyzing walking routes to nearby amenities. Points were based on the distance to amenities; where amenities within a 5-min walk (0.25 miles) were given maximum points (range for WSc = 0-100 points). A decay function is used to assign fewer points to more distant amenities. Multiple linear regression was used to examine associations between WSc and physical activity outcomes (LPA, MVPA, and steps), adjusting for BMI, age, and race. RESULTS: Participants had a mean WSc of 62.9 ± 26.0, wore the accelerometers, on average, 831.3 ± 102.6 min/day for 7.0 ± 1.9 days, took 14,424 ± 4121 steps/day, spent 141.0 ± 43.4 mins/day in LPA and 118.6 ± 39.0 mins/day in MVPA. WSc was significantly and positively associated with steps/day (β=0.05 per 1000 steps, p<0.05), but was not associated with mins/day of LPA (p=0.16) or MVPA (p=0.33). Three subcategories of the WSc were significantly associated with steps/day; errands (β=0.06, p=0.009), shopping (β=0.05, p=0.03), and dining/drinking (β=0.05, p=0.02). Subcategory scores for schools, parks, grocery stores, and culture were not associated with steps/day. CONCLUSIONS: WSc was associated with daily steps but not mins/day in specific intensities (LPA or MVPA). Women with higher steps/day had higher amenity scores for shopping, errands and dining/drinking. Funding: This research was supported by a University of Massachusetts Boston Proposal Development Grant.