ABSTRACT
Hardly a day goes by without a news story on obesity, diet and/or exercise. But despite this media attention we are currently losing the “battle with the bulge”; obesity rates continue to rise in industrialized countries around the world (World Health Organization 2006). As the research evidence builds for the link between lack of physical activity and chronic diseases (e.g. coronary heart disease, hypertension, non-insulin-dependent diabetes, osteoporosis, colon cancer, and anxiety and depression) (Pate et al. 1995), public health researchers, urban planners and other researchers are beginning to investigate how the urban environment can create, enhance, or limit opportunities for humans to participate in physical activities such as walking, jogging, and biking. This chapter will discuss how urban nature spaces, such as parks and highly vegetated neighborhoods, can contribute positively to physical activity levels and other health measures. The new emerging transdisciplinary field of “active community environment studies” combines the dual foci of urban planning and public health to investigate the relationship between the urban environment and physical activity using a social-ecological approach (Stokols 1992; Sallis and Owen 1999). This approach recognizes that the physical environment, in addition to other factors, such as demographic factors, can influence behavior and behavioral change. Several active community environment studies have shown that features of the built urban environment such as residential density (Saelens et al. 2003; Frank et al. 2005; Leslie et al. 2005; Moudon 2005), close proximity to a variety of stores and services (Humpel et al. 2004; Hoehner et al. 2005; Lee and Moudon 2006; Pikora et al. 2006), street connectivity (Duncan and Mummery 2005; Frank et al. 2005; Leslie et al. 2005) and perceptions of safety (Booth et al. 2000; Doyle et al. 2006) are related to patterns in physical activity behavior, particularly walking for transportation or recreation purposes. These associations hold true even after considering and controlling for the effects of personal and social factors such as socio-economic status and self-efficacy. Aesthetic features accompanying the walking area or route have also been shown to be associated with human physical activity (Humpel et al. 2002; Pikora et al. 2003; Lee and Moudon 2004; Owen et al. 2004; Tilt et al. 2007) and urban nature spaces such as parks, street trees and
overall residential greenness are increasingly being recognized as an important feature in creating healthy and walkable urban environments. This chapter will discuss some of the relevant research regarding how two types of urban nearby natures – parks and neighborhood vegetation – may contribute to the physical health of urban residents. Key issues to consider when incorporating nearby nature into urban settings for the purpose of fostering physical activity will be explored. In addition, implications and future research regarding the relationship between nearby nature and physical health will also be examined.
