Over the past eight years, SDSU researcher Jim Sallis has been examining the physical attributes of communities to determine whether walkability of a neighborhood contributes to a healthier community. 

The long-term Neighborhood Quality of Life study, funded by a $2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, evaluated 32 communities in the Seattle, Wash. and Baltimore, Md. regions, starting in 2001. The final results of the study, which will be released this month in Social Science and Medicine, found that people living in high-walkable communities got substantially more exercise than those living in low-walkable areas. 

Using highly specialized pedometers, researchers determined the difference amounted to approximately 35 - 45 additional minutes each week for those living in high-walkable communities. People living in high-walkable neighborhoods were also less likely to be overweight or obese than those in low-walkable neighborhoods.

"There is now significant proof that walkability has a direct and specific relation to the health of residents," Sallis said. "We did this research on both coasts and in communities with varying income levels. In all cases, adults living in communities determined to be more walkable were less likely to be overweight or obese."

Planning a healthier community

Sallis said city planners could significantly affect the health of communities by designing more walkable neighborhoods. 

"We know how to improve the healthfulness of communities, but we have to choose to use that information," Sallis said.  "Fifty percent of buildings that will be in the U.S. in 20 years are not even built yet. Planning more walkable communities as part of the future of this country could make a big difference for a long period of time and that's exactly what we need in order to combat the obesity epidemic."

Sallis also suggests that people who are looking to move should take into account the likely health effects of the community they are considering.

What is walkability?

A community is considered "walkable" if residents have the ability to walk from their home to a location, such as a shopping center or recreation area, as a mode of transportation. Connected streets and the presence of mixed-use construction are also characteristics of walkable communities. 

The neighborhoods in the study were selected to represent both high- and low-walkable and higher- and lower-income areas of the Seattle and Baltimore regions, making the results representative of the entire country, Sallis said.

Researchers found that the percent of overweight or obese individuals was lower for those in high-walkable neighborhoods. Walkability seemed to have similar effects for lower- and higher-income groups, which is important because obesity is a more severe problem in low-income communities.

Where it started

Sallis, who is also program director for SDSU's Active Living Resarch group, began his research in the mid 1980s when he was working with Mexican families in southern San Diego County. His research was an intervention program teaching families how to cook healthier and get more exercise, but he found minimal effects. This experience led to an interest in determining how the physical attributes of the community can contribute to the health of its residents.