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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Validation Of A Commercial Geographical Information Systems Database Of Walking And Bicycling Destinations, Heather A. Whitcomb, Ellen K. Cromley, Kosuke Tamura, Steven J. Melly, Sayali Kale, Francine Laden, Peter James, Robin Puett, Eran Ben-Joseph, Philip J. Troped Nov 2009

Validation Of A Commercial Geographical Information Systems Database Of Walking And Bicycling Destinations, Heather A. Whitcomb, Ellen K. Cromley, Kosuke Tamura, Steven J. Melly, Sayali Kale, Francine Laden, Peter James, Robin Puett, Eran Ben-Joseph, Philip J. Troped

GIS Day

Background: Recent interdisciplinary studies in public health, transportation, and urban planning have shown that stores and other destinations such as banks, post offices, and physical activity facilities within close proximity to residences are positively related to recreational and transportation physical activity. The built environment has been measured several different ways, including conducting field audits and by surveying individuals’ perceptions of their neighborhood. Increasingly researchers are also using geographic information systems (GIS) software and commercially available data sources to create objective measures of the built environment. The advantages of commercial data are that they are relatively easy to access and are …


Exploratory Study Of Environmental Effects On Physical Activity And Overweight In Older Women: Research Update, Heather A. Whitcomb, Kosuke Tamura, Lauren Milius, Francine Laden, Steve Melly, Peter James, Robin Puett, Ellen Cromley, Eran Ben-Joseph, Philip J. Troped Nov 2008

Exploratory Study Of Environmental Effects On Physical Activity And Overweight In Older Women: Research Update, Heather A. Whitcomb, Kosuke Tamura, Lauren Milius, Francine Laden, Steve Melly, Peter James, Robin Puett, Ellen Cromley, Eran Ben-Joseph, Philip J. Troped

GIS Day

Background: Physical inactivity and obesity are major public health issues. Recent studies have provided evidence that attributes of the built environment influence physical activity among adults and that factors such as greater urban sprawl are related to overweight and obesity. Few studies have developed objective individual-level measures of the built environment, a geographic scale that may be more relevant to certain types of physical activity, such as walking. In addition, further research is needed to assess the associations of both objective and perceived environmental factors with physical activity. In this 2-year exploratory study funded by the National Cancer Institute, we …