Living within a Walkable Distance to School and School Socioeconomic Factors Determine Active Commuting (ISCOLE-US)

Abstract

PURPOSE: Active school commuting (walking or biking) promotes favorable body composition and better cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness compared to passive commuting; however, few children actively commute to school. The purpose of this study was to examine how home-school distance impacts active commuting behavior. METHODS: A total of 651 children aged 9-11 years from 21 schools around Baton Rouge, LA participated in the International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment (ISCOLE). Children self-reported their mode of commuting to school in the past week, which was dichotomized as active vs. passive. Geographic informations systems were used to calculate route lengths between schools and children’s residences. Generalized linear mixed models (students within schools) evaluated associations adjusted for school socioeconomic status (SES) and family vehicle ownership. RESULTS: Only 10.9% of children reported actively commuting to school, and 9.6% lived within a walkable distance to school (≤0.5 miles). 70% of children living within 0.5 miles of school reported actively commuting, compared to only 4.6% of children who live over 0.5 miles (OR=1.9; 95%CI:1.7-2.0), although this differed across school SES categories (p for interaction = 0.01). Among children living within 0.5 miles of school, 87% from the lowest SES schools reported actively commuting, compared to 54% from the highest SES schools. CONCLUSIONS: Living within a walkable distance to school facilitates active commuting, but not all children take advantage of this opportunity. A better understanding of barriers for children living within a walkable distance of schools may inform interventions to increase active school commuting.