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Article: What's health got to do with it? As Americans grow in girth, policymakers are looking at community design to encourage physical activity and lower obesity rates.
- Article from:
- State Legislatures
- Article date:
- June 1, 2004
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 National Conference of State Legislatures. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Sixty percent of adults and 15 percent of children in the United States are overweight or obese. While nutrition is a large factor, sedentary lifestyles also contribute to the problem.
"A pressing question for public health officials," noted a study in the September 2003 American Journal of Health Promotion, "is whether the design of our communities makes it more difficult for people to get physical activity and maintain a healthy weight."
SPRAWL DOESN'T HELP
The study--"Relationship Between Urban Sprawl and Physical Activity, Obesity and Morbidity,"--found that "people living in counties marked by sprawling development are likely to walk less ...