Examining the Dose–Response Relationship between Outdoor Jogging and Physical Health of Youths: A Long-Term Experimental Study in Campus Green Space

Yuheng Mao, Yichen He, Tianyu Xia, Haorun Xu, Shuai Zhou and Jinguang Zhang
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Yuheng Mao: The College of Landscape Architecture, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Yichen He: Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119077, Singapore
Tianyu Xia: The College of Landscape Architecture, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Haorun Xu: College of Civil Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China
Shuai Zhou: Asia-Europe Institute, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Malaysia
Jinguang Zhang: The College of Landscape Architecture, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 9, 1-14

Abstract: Many studies have demonstrated that outdoor physical activity positively affects the physical health of young people. Here, we aimed to examine the extent to which outdoor jogging was associated with the physical health of youths, and then to decipher whether a dose–response relationship exists between them. A total of 2852 youths from a Chinese university were enrolled in a long-term experimental study between September 2018 and September 2019. We conducted two waves of physical health tests for 2852 youths (before and after the jogging interventions in 2018 and 2019, respectively) using China’s National Student Physical Health Standard (NSPHS). Paired t -tests were used to examine statistical differences. A multiple regression model was used to evaluate the associations between jogging and physical health. The results showed that: statistically significant changes in the two waves of physical health outcomes were suggested after jogging interventions; outdoor jogging in campus green space was associated with participants’ physical health after controlling for covariates; and a dose–response relationship between jogging and physical health outcomes was revealed, with 120–140 km/year (approximately 3.43–4 km/week) being the most effective intervention dose. Our findings have implications for promoting physical health in youth groups by encouraging outdoor physical activity.

Keywords: campus green space; outdoor physical activity; physical health; activity tracker; physical activity intervention; natural experiment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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