The Associations of Built Environment with Older People Recreational Walking and Physical Activity in a Chinese Small-Scale City of Yiwu.
Int J Environ Res Public Health
; 18(5)2021 03 08.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1143491
ABSTRACT
Physical activity would bring in plenty of health benefits, especially recreational physical activity (RPA). Previous studies have suggested that built environment would affect older people's recreational walking (RW) and RPA, but how the effects exist in a small-scale Chinese city remains unclear. Two hundred and fifty-two older participants were recruited in the city of Yiwu using cross-sectional survey of random samples in 2019. RW and RPA level of participants and perceived scores of built environments were collected using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire and Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale, respectively. Linear regression analysis was conducted to investigate the association of built environment with older people's RW and RPA. The results showed that two main factors affecting older people's RW and RPA were residential density and aesthetics. Additionally, access to services was related to RW, and street connectivity was correlated with RPA. The associations of RW with built environment varied slightly with demographic variables included in the regression model. All the results suggested that lower residential density, better aesthetics environment, and higher street connectivity would motivate older people to engage more in RW and RPA. The better access to services encourages only RW, not RPA, in older people. These findings would be helpful for policy decision makers in the urban construction process in Yiwu. More studies are needed to enlarge the scientific evidence base about small-scale cities in China.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Walking
/
Built Environment
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Aged
/
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
Asia
Language:
English
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Ijerph18052699
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