Effects on general health associated with beach proximity in Barcelona (Spain)

Long-term exposure to green and blue space and incidence of cardiovascular disease: A Danish Nurse Cohort study

BACKGROUND

Few cohort studies have examined the associations of natural surroundings (green and blue space) with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and show mixed findings. We aimed to investigate the associations between long-term exposure to green and blue space and incidence of CVD in the Danish Nurse Cohort.

METHODS

We followed 19,070 female nurses living in Denmark from 1993/1999 to 2018. The shortest Euclidian distance from a residence to three types of green space (park, woodland, and heathland) and four types of blue space (lake, river, coast, and wetland), along with total count of all types of natural surroundings within a 500 meter (m), 1000 m, and 5000 m radius from a residence, were calculated using GeoDanmark data from 2005. Distance was log-transformed to correct for a right-skewed data distribution. Residential air pollution and road traffic noise data for 2005 were estimated by the Danish air pollution modeling system ('DEHM/UBM/AirGIS') and Nord2000 model, respectively. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate associations between green and blue space and the first-ever incidence of total CVD and certain CVD subtypes after adjusting for individual factors, air pollution, and noise. We examined effect modification by age, smoking status, occupational status, household income, and urbanicity level. Hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were presented per e unit (equivalent to ∼2.72 fold) increase in distance.

RESULTS

8179 new cases of CVD were observed over 344,084 person-years. Living further from woodland was associated with higher stroke incidence (HR: 1.153; 95% CI: 1.029-1.293), while living further from heathland was associated with reduced total CVD incidence (HR: 0.975; 95% CI: 0.955-0.996). No associations were found between distance to park, woodland, lake, river, coast, or wetland and total CVD incidence. Total count of all types of green and blue spaces within a 5000 m radius was linked to a reduced risk of CVD incidence. Adjusting for air pollution or road traffic noise did not alter observed associations. Younger individuals (<50 years old) were observed to have lower HRs when living closer to all types of natural surroundings.

CONCLUSION

We found that proximity to woodland was associated with a reduced risk of stroke, whilst no significant or even inverse associations were observed between proximity to other types of natural surroundings and CVD incidence. Total count of all types of natural surroundings within a 5000 m radius was negatively associated with CVD incidence, suggesting cumulative benefits of these areas.

Residence in coastal communities in adolescence and health in young adulthood: An 11-year follow-up of English UKHLS youth questionnaire respondents

We used the UK Household Longitudinal Study to examine whether community type (inland or coastal) in adolescence (10-15 years) was associated with five adult health outcomes assessed over 11 waves of follow-up (2009-22). When the analyses were stratified on area deprivation, four of the five health outcomes - self-rated, long-standing illness, psychological distress and mental functioning - showed worse health in increasingly more deprived communities, and to a greater extent in the most deprived communities that are coastal. For all but self-rated health, associations were robust to additional adjustment for adolescent gender, ethnicity, household income, tenure, and life satisfaction.

Survey data linking coastal visit behaviours to socio-demographic and health profiles

Coastal destinations are highly popular for leisure, yet the effects of spending time at the coast on mental and physical health have remained underexplored. To accelerate the research about the effects of the coast on health, we compiled a dataset from a survey on a sample (N = 1939) of the adult Flemish population about their visits to the Belgian coast. The survey queried the number of days spent at the coast in the previous year or before and the following characteristics of their visits: how often they performed specific activities, which of the 14 municipal seaside resorts they visited, who they were with, what they mentally and physically experienced, and what reasons they had for not visiting the coast more often. The respondents' geo-demographic (including residential proximity to the coast), socio-economic, and health profile was also collected. We anticipate that investigations on the data will increase our understanding about the social structuring of coastal visits and give context to the effects of the coast on human health.

Visiting nature is associated with lower socioeconomic inequalities in well-being in Wales

Natural environments can promote well-being through multiple mechanisms. Many studies have investigated relationships between residential green/blue space (GBS) and well-being, fewer explore relationships with actual use of GBS. We used a nationally representative survey, the National Survey for Wales, anonymously linked with spatial GBS data to investigate associations of well-being with both residential GBS and time in nature (N = 7631). Both residential GBS and time spent in nature were associated with subjective well-being. Higher green-ness was associated with lower well-being, counter to hypotheses (predicting the Warwick and Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale (WEMWBS): Enhanced vegetation index β =  - 1.84, 95% confidence interval (CI) - 3.63, - 0.05) but time spent in nature was associated with higher well-being (four hours a week in nature vs. none β = 3.57, 95% CI 3.02, 4.13). There was no clear association between nearest GBS proximity and well-being. In support of the equigenesis theory, time spent in nature was associated with smaller socioeconomic inequalities in well-being. The difference in WEMWBS (possible range 14-70) between those who did and did not live in material deprivation was 7.7 points for those spending no time in nature, and less at 4.5 points for those spending time in nature up to 1 h per week. Facilitating access and making it easier for people to spend time in nature may be one way to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in well-being.

Integrated analysis of doubly disadvantaged neighborhoods by considering both green space and blue space accessibility and COVID-19 infection risk

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on the physical and mental health of the public. Nevertheless, the presence of green and blue spaces has been shown to be able to encourage physical activities and alleviate the mental distress caused by COVID-19. However, just as the impact of COVID-19 varies by geographical region and area, the distribution of green and blue spaces is also different across different neighborhoods and areas. By using Hong Kong as the study area, we determine the local neighborhoods that suffer from both high COVID-19 infection risk as well as low green and blue space accessibility. The results show that some of the poorest neighborhoods in the territory such as Sham Shui Po, Kwun Tong and Wong Tai Sin are also among the most doubly disadvantaged in terms of COVID-19 infection risk as well as green and blue space accessibility.

Testing the Multiple Pathways of Residential Greenness to Pregnancy Outcomes Model in a Sample of Pregnant Women in the Metropolitan Area of Donostia-San Sebastián

Residential greenness may positively impact diverse human health indicators through the reduction of air pollution, the improvement of psychological health, and the promotion of physical activity. Previous studies indicate a weak but positive association with pregnancy outcomes. Our aim was to test the multiple pathways from residential greenness to pregnancy outcomes model, using residential NO₂ concentrations, psychological health, and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) during the first trimester of pregnancy, in a sample of 440 pregnant women residing in Donostia, Spain. Three metrics of residential greenness were calculated around each participant’s home address: normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) within 300 m, and green space (>5000 m²) availability within 300 and 500 m. Residential NO₂ concentrations, psychological health, and MVPA were explored as mediators of the associations between these metrics and the following pregnancy outcomes: birth weight (BW), low birth weight (LBW), prematurity, small for gestational age (SGA), and large for gestational age (LGA). Educational attainment, parity, and body mass index (BMI) were treated as covariates. Counterfactual mediation analyses showed very low to null statistical support for an association between any of the greenspace metrics and pregnancy outcomes in the full sample. Green space availability (300 m) was associated with lower BW and showed a marginal protective effect against LGA.