Aims: to evaluate 1) the PA variation explained by work walkability, 2) the moderating effects of person-level characteristics to the relationship between PA and work walkability, and 3) the differences in the rate of change in PA over time by worksite walkability.
Methods: self-report and accelerometer measured PA at baseline (aim 1, 2); longitudinal accelerometer PA during the initial 56 days of a behavioral intervention (aim 3). Adults were generally healthy and reported part- or full-time employment with a geocodeable address outside the home. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) measured walkability followed established techniques (i.e., residential, intersection, and transit densities, and land-use-mix).
Results: On average, worksite walkability did not show direct relationships with PA (aim 1); yet certain person-level characteristics moderated the relationships: sex, race, and not having young children in the household (aim 2). During 56 days of intervention, the PA rate of change over time showed no evidence of a moderating effect by worksite walkability.
Discussion: Worksite walkability was generally not shown to relate to the overall PA. However, specific subgroups (women, those without young children) appeared more responsive to their worksite neighborhood walkability. Prior literature shows certain demographics respond differently with various BE exposures, and this study adds a potentially novel moderator of interest regarding young children at home. Understanding who benefits from access to walkable BE may inform targeted interventions and policy to improve PA levels and foster health equity.
Eleven women (46.9±7.0 years) not participating in regular exercise and self-reporting insomnia completed a graded maximal exercise test followed by a crossover trial of three randomly assigned conditions separated by a 1-week washout. Participants performed moderate-intensity [MIC, 30 minutes, 65-70% maximum heart rate (HRmax)] or high-intensity (HIT, 20 minutes, 1-minute bouts at 90-95% HRmax alternating with 1-minute active recovery) treadmill walking or a no-exercise control (NEC) on two consecutive weekdays 4-6 hours prior to typical bed time. A dual-function wrist-worn accelerometer/temperature monitor recorded movement and skin temperature from which sleep-onset latency (SOL), sleep maintenance, sleep efficiency, total sleep time (TST), and peripheral skin temperature changes were calculated. Participants self-reported sleep outcomes weekly, enjoyment of exercise the morning after HIT and MIC, and exercise intensity preference upon completing all conditions. Mixed models analysis of variance examined differences between and within conditions controlling for demographic characteristics and habitual physical activity.
HIT resulted in up to a 90-minute TST increase on night four (448 minutes, 95% CI 422.4-474.2) compared to nights one-three. MIC nights three (43.5 minutes, 95% CI 30.4-56.6) and four (42.1 minutes 95% CI 29.0-55.2) showed nearly a 30-minute SOL worsening compared to nights one-two. No other actigraphy-measured sleep parameters differenced within or between conditions. Self-reported sleep outcomes, peripheral skin temperature change, and exercise enjoyment between conditions were similar (p>0.05). More participants preferred lower (n=3) to higher (n=1) intensity activities.
Early evening high-intensity and moderate-intensity exercise had no effect on sleep outcomes compared to a control in non-exercising adults reporting sleep complaints. Sleep benefits from HIT may require exercise on successive days. Participants indicated partiality for lower intensity exercise. More information on timing and mode of physical activity to improve sleep in this population is warranted.
Beginning in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a sudden and severe economic downturn and led to disruptions in domestic and international food systems and supply chains. Over the first few months of the pandemic, in the United States, many stores had empty shelves, bars and restaurants closed, and children could no longer go to school. The unemployment rate increased from 3.5% in February 2020 to 14.8% in April 2020, leading to economic instability for many households. As a result, household food insecurity, defined as having limited or inconsistent access to nutritious and affordable food, increased rapidly.
During the first months of 2021, vaccinations began rolling out, more individuals returned to in-person work, children to schools, and restrictions were gradually phased out. Unemployment has decreased since the April 2020 peak to 5.4% in July 2021, but remains above pre-pandemic levels. This brief describes the prevalence of household food insecurity, job disruptions, and food-related behaviors as reported by a nationally representative sample of 1,643 U.S. adults, both in the year prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2019 – March 2020) and during the first four months of 2021 (January – April 2021), a period representing approximately one year since the onset of the pandemic.
Relationships between food and physical activity (PA) environments and children's related behaviors are complex.
Latent class analyses derived patterns from proximity to healthy and unhealthy food outlets, PA facilities and parks, and counts of residential dwellings and intersections. Regression analyses examined whether derived classes were related to food consumption, PA, and overweight among 404 low-income children.
Compared to children living in Low PA-Low Food environments, children in High Intersection&Parks-Moderate Density&Food, and High Density-Low Parks-High Food environments, had significantly greater sugar-sweetened beverage consumption (ps<0.01) and overweight/obesity (ps<0.001). Children in the High Density-Low Parks-High Food environments were more likely to walk to destinations (p = 0.01)
Recognizing and leveraging beneficial aspects of neighborhood patterns may be more effective at positively influencing children's eating and PA behaviors compared to isolating individual aspects of the built environment.
Background
The United States Department of Agriculture’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the country’s largest nutrition assistance program for low-income populations. Although SNAP has been shown to reduce food insecurity, research findings on the diet quality of program participants are inconsistent.
Objective
This study evaluated whether the community food environment is a potential moderator of the association between SNAP participation and eating behaviors.
Design
This cross-sectional study used participant data from a telephone survey of 2,211 households in four cities in New Jersey. Data were collected from two cross-sectional panels from 2009 to 2010 and 2014. Food outlet data were purchased from commercial sources and classified as supermarkets, small grocery stores, convenience stores, or limited service restaurants.
Participants/setting
Analysis is limited to 983 respondents (588 SNAP participants) with household incomes below 130% of the federal poverty level.
Main outcome measures
Eating behaviors were assessed as frequency of consumption of fruit, vegetables, salad, and sugar-sweetened beverages.
Statistical analyses performed
Interaction and stratified analyses using gamma regression determined the differences in the association between SNAP participation and eating behaviors by the presence or absence of food outlets adjusted for covariates.
Results
SNAP participation was associated with a higher frequency of consuming sugar-sweetened beverages (P<0.05) when respondents lived within ¼ to ½ mile of a small grocery store, supermarket, and limited service restaurant. SNAP participants who did not live close to a convenience store reported a lower frequency of sugar-sweetened beverage consumption (P=0.01), and those living more than ½ mile away from a supermarket reported a lower frequency of fruit consumption (P=0.03).
Conclusions
The findings from this study suggest that the community food environment may play a role in moderating the association between SNAP participation and eating behaviors. Although SNAP participation is associated with some unhealthy behaviors, this association may only hold true when respondents live in certain food environments.