Are neighborhood characteristics associated with sedentary behavior in adolescents? A systematic review

Influence of parental nativity and perceived neighborhood environment on physical activity and screen time of United States youth

OBJECTIVE

This study assessed how parental nativity and perceived environment are associated with physical activity and screen time of U.S. children and adolescents.

METHODS

Data originated from the 2020-21 U.S. National Survey of Children's Health. We conducted multivariable Poisson regression to assess the cross-sectional association of parental nativity and perceived neighborhood environment variables on parental reports of youth meeting national physical activity and screen time guidelines. We tested interactions of parental nativity and neighborhood environment variables on both outcomes. Analyses were conducted using STATA v17 and p < 0.05 indicated statistical significance.

RESULTS

The sample of 24,928 children and 30,951 adolescents was 11.6 years of age, on average, with approximately 39% under 200% of the federal poverty level. About one-third of the sample (27.5%) had foreign-born parents. In adjusted models, we found that compared to youth with U.S.-born parents, those with foreign-born parents had a lower prevalence of meeting physical activity guidelines. Youth whose parents reported living in safe neighborhoods had a higher prevalence of meeting guidelines for physical activity (children: PR = 1.20, 95%CI 1.14, 1.27; adolescents: PR = 1.23, 95%CI 1.14, 1.32) and screen time (children: PR = 1.19, 95%CI 1.13, 1.26; adolescents: PR = 1.16, 95%CI 1.06, 1.28) than youth whose parents reported unsafe neighborhoods. We found similar associations between neighborhoods considered supportive or with many amenities and meeting physical activity and screen time guidelines.

CONCLUSIONS

Youth whose parents are foreign-born have a lower prevalence of sufficient activity, and perceived parental neighborhood safety and support may be significant influences on youth physical activity and screen time.

The neighborhood physical environment and the 24-hour movement behavior composition among children

The time spent in sleep, sedentary behavior, and physical activity form a 24-hour movement behavior composition. The objective was to identify neighborhood physical environment features associated with multiple components of the movement behavior composition among 10 to 13-year-olds. Twenty-three neighborhood physical environment features were measured in 1 km buffers from the participants' homes and from these walkability, traffic safety, dedicated play spaces, non-dedicated play spaces, noise, and artificial light indices were created. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, light physical activity, sedentary time, and sleep duration were measured. Compositional data analysis was used to establish differences in movement behaviors according to neighborhood physical environment features. One hundred and sixteen associations, reflecting four movement behaviors X 29 environment variables and indices, were examined. Only three of these were statistically significant. Therefore, neighborhood physical environment features were not meaningful correlates of 24-hour movement behaviors.

Using street view imagery to examine the association between urban neighborhood disorder and the long-term recurrence risk of patients discharged with acute myocardial infarction in central Beijing, China

Background

To examine the association between urban neighborhood disorder and the recurrence risk of patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in central Beijing, China.

Methods

Recurrent AMI was identified by the Beijing Monitoring System for Cardiovascular Diseases through the end of 2019 for patients discharged with AMI between 2007 and 2017. Cox proportional hazards models were performed to estimate associations between neighborhood disorder and AMI recurrence.

Results

Of 66,238 AMI patients, 11,872 had a recurrent event, and 3117 died from AMI during a median followup of 5.92 years. After covariate adjustment, AMI patients living in the high tertile of neighborhood disorder had a higher recurrence risk (hazard ratio [HR] 1.08, 95 % confidence interval [CI], 1.03-1.14) compared with those in the low tertile. A stronger association was noted for fatal recurrent AMI (HR 1.21, 95 % CI 1.10-1.34). The association was mainly observed in females (HR 1.04, 95 % CI: 1.02 to 1.06).

Conclusions

Serious neighborhood disorder may contribute to higher recurrence risk, particularly fatal recurrence, among AMI patients. Policies to eliminate neighborhood disorders may play an important role in the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease.

Are There Common Correlates of Adolescents' Sport Participation and Screen Time?

Objective: This study aimed to identify intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental correlates of leisure-time participation in sports and examine whether they are also associated with screen-time among adolescents. Methods: Adolescents from eight schools in Victoria, Australia were recruited for this study. Participants (n = 400) comprised of an even distribution of boys (51%) and girls (49%) aged 12-16 years. Their engagement in leisure-time activities (including sports and screen-time) and 13 potential correlates were self-reported. Multinomial logistic regression analyses examined correlates of sports and screen-time participation categories, accounting for clustering by school and adjusting for significant sociodemographic characteristics. Results: The majority (76%) participated in leisure-time sports and exceeded screen-time recommendations (<2 h/day) on both weekdays (69%) and weekend days (85%). Greater internal motivation for sports was positively associated with sports participation and inversely associated with screen-time on weekend days, respectively. Fewer barriers, positive family and coach support and more neighborhood sporting opportunities were significantly associated with greater sports participation. Neighborhood social norms were inversely associated with sports participation. Preference for sports was associated with less weekday and weekend screen-time. Friend support for sports was inversely associated with weekday screen-time. Access to sports facilities in the local neighborhood was associated with more weekday and weekend screen-time. Conclusion: Internal motivation for sports was associated with both sports participation and less screen-time. Preference for leisure-time sports and friend support for sports were associated with less screen-time. Future research should continue to explore common correlates of multiple leisure-time behaviors to inform the development of effective intervention strategies.

Associations of the perceived neighborhood environment and screen time in adolescents living in a medium-sized city in Brazil: a cross-sectional study

Individual attributes have been investigated to explain sedentary behavior. However, few studies have evaluated this association at the neighborhood level. This study aimed to determine the association between screen time (ST) among adolescents and perceived neighborhood characteristics. This cross-sectional study was conducted using a multistage household survey in Vespasiano, Brazil, in 2015-2016. Logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the associations between the adolescent self-reported ST (television, computer, and video game > 2 h/day) and neighborhood characteristics (green space, sidewalk maintenance, street lighting, social disorder, safety during the day, and risk of violence) reported by an adult. Four hundred and twenty-three adolescents aged 11-17 participated in the study. ST was reported by 74.0% of the adolescents. After adjustment for confounder variables, neighborhood characteristics did not remain associated with ST. The results evidence no associations between ST among adolescents and perceived neighborhood environment and indicate the need for future studies of this relation.

Identifying risk profiles for excess sedentary behaviour in youth using individual, family and neighbourhood characteristics

There are few known determinants of sedentary behaviour (SB) in children. We generated and compared profiles associated with risk of excess SB among children (n = 294) both at 8-10 and 10-12 years of age (Visits 1 and 2, respectively), using data from the QUebec Adipose and Lifestyle InvesTigation in Youth. Excess SB was measured by accelerometry and defined as >50% of total wear time at <100 counts/minutes. Recursive partitioning analyses were performed with candidate individual-, family-, and neighbourhood-level factors assessed at Visit 1, and distinct groups at varying risk of excess SB were identified for both timepoints. From the ages of 8-10 to 10-12 years, the prevalence of excess SB more than doubled (24.5% to 57.1%). At Visit 1, excess SB was greatest (73%) among children simultaneously not meeting physical activity guidelines, reporting >2 h/day of weekday non-academic screen time, living in low-dwelling density neighbourhoods, having poor park access, and living in neighbourhoods with greater disadvantage. At Visit 2, the high-risk group (70%) was described by children simultaneously not meeting physical activity guidelines, reporting >2 h/day of non-academic screen time on weekends, and living in neighbourhoods with low disadvantage. Risk factors related to individual lifestyle behaviours are generally consistent, and neighbourhood factors generally inconsistent, as children age from late childhood to pre-adolescence. Multiple factors from developmental, behavioural and contextual domains increase risk for excess sedentary behaviour; these warrant consideration to devise effective prevention or management strategies.

Sociodemographic inequities and active transportation in adults from Latin America: an eight-country observational study

Background

Active transportation is a crucial sort of physical activity for developing sustainable environments and provides essential health benefits. This is particularly important in Latin American countries because they present the highest burden of non-communicable diseases relative to other worldwide regions. This study aimed to examine the patterns of active transportation and its association with sociodemographic inequities in Latin American countries.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted in eight countries. Participants (n = 8547, 18–65 years) self-reported their active transportation (walking, cycling, and total) using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Sex, age, ethnicity, socioeconomic level, education level, public and private transport use, and transport mode were used as sociodemographic inequities.

Results

Participants spent a total of 19.9, 3.1, and 23.3 min/day with walking, cycling, and total active transportation, respectively. Mixed and other ethnicity (Asian, Indigenous, Gypsy, and other), high socioeconomic level as well as middle and high education level presented higher walking than Caucasian, low socioeconomic and education level. Private transport mode and use of ≥ 6 days/week of private transport showed lower walking than public transport mode and ≤ 2 days/week of private transport. Use of ≥ 3 days/week of public transport use presented higher walking than ≤ 2 days/week of public transport. Men had higher cycling for active transportation than women. Use of ≥ 3 days/week of public transport use presented higher cycling than ≤ 2 days/week of public transport. ≥6 days/week showed lower cycling than ≤ 2 days/week of private transport use. Men (b: 5.57: 95 %CI: 3.89;7.26), black (3.77: 0.23;7.31), mixed (3.20: 1.39;5.00) and other ethnicity (7.30: 2.55;12.04), had higher total active transportation than women and Caucasian. Private transport mode (-7.03: -11.65;-2.41) and ≥ 6 days/week of private transport use (-4.80: -6.91;-0.31) showed lower total active transportation than public transport mode and ≤ 2 days/week of private transport use. Use of 3–5 (5.10: 1.35;8.85) and ≥ 6 days/week (8.90: 3.07;14.73) of public transport use presented higher total active transportation than ≤ 2 days/week of public transport use. Differences among countries were observed.

Conclusions

Sociodemographic inequities are associated differently with active transportation across Latin American countries. Interventions and policies that target the promotion of active policies transportation essential to consider sociodemographic inequities.

Trial registration

ClinicalTrials.Gov NCT02226627. Retrospectively registered on August 27, 2014.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12939-021-01524-0.

Accelerometer-Measured Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior Levels and Patterns in Female Sixth Graders: The CReActivity Project

Regular physical activity (PA) and low levels of sedentary behavior (SB) have positive health effects on young people. Adolescent girls of low socioeconomic background represent a high-risk group with regard to physical inactivity and SB. In this study, accelerometer-measured levels of PA and SB of female sixth graders attending lower secondary schools in Germany are presented, patterns of PA and SB throughout the day are described and differences between weekdays and weekend days are analyzed. Data of 425 students of the CReActivity project were analyzed. Sampling and processing of accelerometer data followed recent recommendations, which had not been applied to data of a German-speaking sample before. The WHO recommendation of daily 60 min moderate-to-vigorous PA was fulfilled by 90.4% of the girls on weekdays and by 57.4% on weekend days. The significant weekday-weekend differences were mainly associated with active commuting to and from school. Students engaged in SB for more than 8 h on weekdays and for over 7 h on weekend days. The results suggest a strong need for interventions increasing PA and reducing SB, especially during school hours and on weekends. Furthermore, a comparison with methods and results of previous studies highlights the need to follow recent criteria in accelerometer data sampling and processing to ensure an accurate and valid differentiation between PA-related risk groups and non-risk groups.

Effectiveness and promising behavior change techniques of interventions targeting energy balance related behaviors in children from lower socioeconomic environments: A systematic review

This systematic review aims to summarize the evidence regarding the effectiveness of interventions targeting energy balance-related behaviors in children from lower socioeconomic environments and the applied behavior change techniques. The literature search was conducted in Cochrane, Embase, Psycinfo and Pubmed. Articles had to be published between January 2000 and September 2019. Studies were included that i) targeted dietary behavior, physical activity and/or sedentary behavior; ii) had a controlled trial design; iii) included children aged 9–12 years old; iv) focused on lower socioeconomic environments; and v) took place in upper-middle or high income countries. Two independent researchers extracted data, identified behavior change techniques using the Behavior Change Technique Taxonomy v1, and performed a methodological quality assessment using the quality assessment tool of the Effective Public Health Practice Project. We included 24 studies, of which one received a high and three a moderate quality rating. Demonstration, practice and providing instructions on how to perform a behavior were the most commonly applied behavior change techniques. Seven studies reported significant beneficial intervention effects: five on physical activity, one on physical activity and sedentary behavior and one on dietary behavior. When comparing effective versus non-effective interventions, and comparing our review to previous reviews focusing on children from the general population, similar behavior change techniques were applied. More high quality research is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions and their behavior change techniques targeting children of low socioeconomic environments.

PROSPERO registration number: CRD42016052599

Correlates of screen time and mediators of differences by parental education among adolescents

Background

Existing literature shows that there is an inverse association between socioeconomic position and screen time among adolescents. What is less known is the mechanism behind these differences. The study aimed to explore individual, interpersonal and neighborhood environmental correlates of total screen time (TST) among adolescents and to assess their mediating role in the association between parental education and TST.

Methods

A cross-sectional study including 706 adolescents (mean age of 13.6 (SD = 0.3)) was used to collect data at schools through an online questionnaire. Multiple regression analyses were used to explore factors associated with TST. Mediation analyses were conducted to assess whether these factors mediated the association between parental education and TST.

Results

Multiple linear regression analyses, adjusted for gender and age, showed that parental modelling of TV and movie streaming, TV/movie streaming during dinner and access to screens were positively related to TST. Self-efficacy towards limiting TV and movie streaming, self-efficacy towards limiting computer/electronic game use, and the perceived opportunities for physical activity in the neighborhood were inversely related to total screen time. All of these factors except self-efficacy towards limiting TV and movie streaming mediated the association between parental education and TST.

Conclusions

The study identified several modifiable factors at the individual, interpersonal and neighborhood environmental levels that can be targeted in interventions aimed at decreasing screen time among youth in general and among those with a low socioeconomic position in particular.

Neighborhood Built Environment and Socioeconomic Status are Associated with Active Commuting and Sedentary Behavior, but not with Leisure-Time Physical Activity, in University Students

The role of neighborhood characteristics in promoting physical activity and sedentary behaviors (SB) has not been extensively studied in university students. The study purpose was to analyze the associations of neighborhood built environment and neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES) with active commuting, leisure-time physical activity (LTPA), and SB among university students. This is a cross-sectional study of 308 undergraduate students from two urban universities in Valencia, Spain. Participants' residential neighborhoods were classified according to walkability and SES levels. Walkability was defined as an index of three built environment attributes (i.e., residential density, land-use mix, and street connectivity) based on geographical information system data. Active commuting to and from university (ACU), active commuting in the neighborhood, LTPA, and SB were evaluated through a questionnaire. Mixed model regression analyses were performed. There were no significant SES-walkability interactions for any of the outcomes analyzed. However, university students living in more walkable areas reported two more ACU trips per week compared to those living in less walkable neighborhoods (p < 0.01). University students living in lower-SES neighborhoods reported more ACU trips per week than those living in higher-SES neighborhoods (p < 0.05). Regarding LTPA, there were no significant SES or walkability main effects. Neighborhood SES was negatively related to active commuting in the neighborhood and to time spent in SB (all p < 0.05). Participants living in lower-SES neighborhoods reported more active commuting per week and had the highest average minutes spent in SB. This study highlights the relevance of assessing university's residential environment when active transportation and SB are analyzed.