Centre for the Built Environment and Health, School of Population Health, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia.
Sports Med. 2009;39(12):995-1009. doi: 10.2165/11319620-000000000-00000.
In the post-World War II era, there have been dramatic changes to the environment that appear to be having a detrimental impact on the lifestyles and incidental physical activities of young people. These changes are not trivial and have the potential to influence not only physical health, but also mental health and child development. However, the evidence of the impact of the built environment on physical activity to date is inconsistent. This review examines the evidence on the association between the built environment and walking for transport as well as physical activity generally, with a focus on methodological issues that may explain inconsistencies in the literature to date. It appears that many studies fail to measure behaviour-specific environmental correlates, and insufficient attention is being given to differences according to the age of study participants. Higher levels of out-of-school-hours physical activity and walking appear to be significantly associated with higher levels of urban density and neighbourhoods with mixed-use planning, especially for older children and adolescents. Proximate recreational facilities also appear to predict young people's level of physical activity. However, there are inconsistencies in the literature involving studies with younger children. Independent mobility increases with age. For younger children, the impact of the built environment is influenced by the decision-making of parents as the gatekeepers of their behaviour. Cross-cultural differences may also be present and are worthy of greater exploration. As children develop and are given more independent mobility, it appears that the way neighbourhoods are designed - particularly in terms of proximity and connectivity to local destinations, including schools and shopping centres, and the presence of footpaths - becomes a determinant of whether children are able, and are permitted by their parents, to walk and use destinations locally. If older children and adolescents are to enjoy health and developmental benefits of independent mobility, a key priority must be in reducing exposure to traffic and in increasing surveillance on streets (i.e. 'eyes-on-the-street') through neighbourhood and building design, by encouraging others to walk locally, and by discouraging motor vehicle use in favour of walking and cycling. Parents need to be assured that the rights and safety of pedestrians (and cyclists) - particularly child pedestrians and cyclists - are paramount if we are to turn around our 'child-free streets', now so prevalent in contemporary Australian and US cities. There remains a need for more age- and sex-specific research using behaviour- and context-specific measures, with a view to building a more consistent evidence base to inform future environmental interventions.
在第二次世界大战后时代，环境发生了巨大变化，这些变化似乎对年轻人的生活方式和偶然的体育活动产生了不利影响。这些变化不容忽视，它们不仅可能影响身体健康，还可能影响心理健康和儿童发育。然而，迄今为止，有关建筑环境对体育活动影响的证据并不一致。本综述审查了建筑环境与交通步行以及一般体力活动之间关联的证据，重点关注可能解释迄今为止文献中不一致的方法问题。似乎许多研究未能测量行为特定的环境相关性，并且对研究参与者年龄差异的关注不够。课外体力活动和步行水平较高与城市密度较高和混合用途规划的社区明显相关，尤其是对于年龄较大的儿童和青少年。就近的娱乐设施似乎也可以预测年轻人的体力活动水平。然而，涉及年幼儿童的研究文献中存在不一致。随着年龄的增长，独立流动性会增加。对于年幼的孩子，父母作为其行为的监护人的决策会影响建筑环境的影响。可能还存在跨文化差异，值得进一步探讨。随着儿童的发展和获得更多的独立流动性，社区的设计方式——特别是在与当地目的地（包括学校和购物中心）的接近程度和连接程度以及人行道的存在方面——似乎成为了决定儿童是否能够并获得父母允许在当地步行和使用目的地的决定因素。如果要让年长的儿童和青少年享受独立流动性带来的健康和发育益处，那么当务之急必须减少他们暴露在交通中的风险，并通过社区和建筑设计增加街道（即“眼睛在街道上”）的监控，鼓励其他人在当地步行，反对使用汽车而提倡步行和骑自行车。如果我们要扭转现在在澳大利亚和美国城市中如此普遍的“无儿童街道”现象，父母就需要确信行人（和骑自行车的人）的权利和安全，尤其是儿童行人的安全是最重要的。需要进行更多的针对特定年龄和性别的研究，使用行为和具体情况的具体措施，以期建立一个更一致的证据基础，为未来的环境干预措施提供信息。
