Association of Perceived Neighbourhood Walkability with Self-Reported Physical Activity and Body Mass Index in South African Adolescents

Feyisayo A. Wayas (), Joanne A. Smith, Estelle V. Lambert, Natalie Guthrie-Dixon, Yves Wasnyo, Sacha West, Tolu Oni and Louise Foley
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Feyisayo A. Wayas: Research Centre for Health through Physical Activity, Lifestyle and Sport (HPALS), Division of Physiological Sciences, Department of Human Biology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa
Joanne A. Smith: Caribbean Institute for Health Research, Epidemiology Research Unit, The University of the West Indies, Mona, Kingston 7, Jamaica
Estelle V. Lambert: Research Centre for Health through Physical Activity, Lifestyle and Sport (HPALS), Division of Physiological Sciences, Department of Human Biology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa
Natalie Guthrie-Dixon: Caribbean Institute for Health Research, Epidemiology Research Unit, The University of the West Indies, Mona, Kingston 7, Jamaica
Yves Wasnyo: Health of Populations in Transition (HoPiT), Research Group, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé 1, Yaoundé P.O. Box 8046, Cameroon
Sacha West: Department of Sport Management, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town 7705, South Africa
Tolu Oni: Medical Research Council Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
Louise Foley: Medical Research Council Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 3, 1-16

Abstract: Adolescence is a life stage critical to the establishment of healthy behaviours, including physical activity (PA). Factors associated with the built environment have been shown to impact PA across the life course. We examined the sociodemographic differences in, and associations between, perceived neighbourhood walkability, PA, and body mass index (BMI) in South African adolescents. We recruited a convenience sample (n = 143; 13–18 years; 65% female) of students from three high schools (middle/high and low-income areas). Participants completed a PA questionnaire and the Neighbourhood Environment Walkability Scale (NEWS)-Africa and anthropometry measurements. Multivariable linear regression was used to examine various relationships. We found that, compared with adolescents living in middle/high income neighbourhoods, those living in low-income neighbourhoods had lower perceived walkability and PA with higher BMI percentiles. The associations between neighbourhood walkability and PA were inconsistent. In the adjusted models, land use diversity and personal safety were associated with club sports participation, street connectivity was positively associated with school sports PA, and more favourable perceived walkability was negatively associated with active transport. Overall, our findings suggest that the perceived walkability of lower income neighbourhoods is worse in comparison with higher income neighbourhoods, though the association with PA and BMI is unclear.

Keywords: adolescents; environmental walkability attributes; physical inactivity; obesity; residential income areas; physical activity domains (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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