Public Rental Housing and Obesogenic Behaviors among Adults in Hong Kong: Mediator Role of Food and Physical Activity Environment

Ting Zhang, Bo Huang, Hung Wong, Samuel Yeung-shan Wong and Roger Yat-Nork Chung
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Ting Zhang: School of International and Public Affairs, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200030, China
Bo Huang: Institute of Space and Earth Information Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China
Hung Wong: Department of Social Work, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China
Samuel Yeung-shan Wong: CUHK Institute of Health Equity, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China
Roger Yat-Nork Chung: CUHK Institute of Health Equity, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 5, 1-14

Abstract: Public rental housing (PRH) for low-income families has been shown in several studies to be associated with poor health status and obesity. However, the causes of this health disparity are controversial, and the associations and pathways between PRH and obesogenic behaviors remain unknown. Using cross-sectional survey data of 1977 adults living in Hong Kong (aged or over 18) together with multi-source GIS-based environmental data, we examined the associations between PRH and obesogenic behaviors and the extent to which those associations can be explained by neighborhood food and physical environment. The unhealthy food environment, which relates with infrequent fruit and vegetables consumption, was calculated based on the relative density of fast food restaurants and convenience stores to grocery stores. The physical activity environment, which relates to physical inactivity and prolonged sitting, was assessed in terms of density of sports facilities and street greenery, separately. Regressions and mediation analyses show that PRH was negatively associated with physical inactivity directly and also indirectly via higher sports facilities density; however, PRH was positively associated with unhealthy diet largely directly and positively associated with prolonged sitting indirectly via less street greenery. We advanced the international literature of PRH health impact assessment and its environmental health pathways by providing evidence from the least housing-affordable city in the world. The findings provide planning implications in formulating a healthier PRH community for these low-income PRH households and mitigating health disparities induced by housing type.

Keywords: physical inactivity; prolonged sitting; unhealthy diet; sports facilities; street greenery (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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