Living in a well-serviced urban area is associated with maintenance of frequent walking among seniors in the VoisiNuAge study.

OBJECTIVE

This paper examined whether or not closer proximity to local services and amenities was associated with maintenance of more frequent walking over time among urban-dwelling seniors over and above individual-level characteristics.

METHOD

A sample of 521 adults who were part of the VoisiNuAge study and who resided in a large North American urban area reported on the frequency of walking outside the home over a 3-year period and on their health, sociodemographic characteristics, social support and resources, and perceptions of different features of their residential environment. Information about the distance between their home and 16 services and amenities was obtained from a geographic information system. Seniors were then classified into quartiles of proximity (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4).

RESULTS

Unadjusted and adjusted ordinal growth curve models showed that closer proximity to services and amenities was associated with greater likelihood of frequent walking at all times throughout the 3-year period.

DISCUSSION

Findings are consistent with the notion that environments may act as buoys for the maintenance of important health behaviors. Future experimental and quasi-experimental research is required to explore whether or not the environment can play a causal role in influencing patterns of walking over time.