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Urban Park Development and Pediatric Obesity Rates: A Quasi-Experiment Using Electronic Health Record Data.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Goldsby, TU; George, BJ; Yeager, VA; Sen, BP; Ferdinand, A; Sims, DMT; Manzella, B; Cockrell Skinner, A; Allison, DB; Menachemi, N
Published in: Int J Environ Res Public Health
April 8, 2016

INTRODUCTION: Childhood obesity affects ~20% of children in the United States. Environmental influences, such as parks, are linked with increased physical activity (PA). OBJECTIVE: To examine whether changes in Body Mass Index (BMI) z-score were associated with construction of a new park. METHODS: A quasi-experimental design was used to determine whether living in proximity of a park was associated with a reduction in BMI z-score. Children were selected from health clinics within an 11 mile radius of the park. A repeated-measure ANOVA was employed for analysis of the relationship between exposure (new park) and BMI z-score. RESULTS: Participants were 1443 (median age 10.3 range (2-17.9 years), BMI: z-score 0.84 ± 1.09) African American (77.4%) adolescents. Change in BMI z-score was not statistically different for children living at different distances from the park after controlling for age, gender, race, ethnicity, or payer type (p = 0.4482). We did observe a small 0.03 increase in BMI z-score from pre- to post-park (p = 0.0007). There was a significant positive association between child's baseline age and BMI z-score (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This study found proximity to a park was not associated with reductions in BMI z-score. Additional efforts to understand the complex relationship between park proximity, access, and PA are warranted.

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Published In

Int J Environ Res Public Health

DOI

EISSN

1660-4601

Publication Date

April 8, 2016

Volume

13

Issue

4

Start / End Page

411

Location

Switzerland

Related Subject Headings

  • Urban Renewal
  • Toxicology
  • Racial Groups
  • Pediatric Obesity
  • Parks, Recreational
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Environment
  • Electronic Health Records
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
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Goldsby, T. U., George, B. J., Yeager, V. A., Sen, B. P., Ferdinand, A., Sims, D. M. T., … Menachemi, N. (2016). Urban Park Development and Pediatric Obesity Rates: A Quasi-Experiment Using Electronic Health Record Data. Int J Environ Res Public Health, 13(4), 411. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph13040411
Goldsby, TaShauna U., Brandon J. George, Valerie A. Yeager, Bisakha P. Sen, Alva Ferdinand, Devon M. T. Sims, Bryn Manzella, Asheley Cockrell Skinner, David B. Allison, and Nir Menachemi. “Urban Park Development and Pediatric Obesity Rates: A Quasi-Experiment Using Electronic Health Record Data.Int J Environ Res Public Health 13, no. 4 (April 8, 2016): 411. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph13040411.
Goldsby TU, George BJ, Yeager VA, Sen BP, Ferdinand A, Sims DMT, et al. Urban Park Development and Pediatric Obesity Rates: A Quasi-Experiment Using Electronic Health Record Data. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2016 Apr 8;13(4):411.
Goldsby, TaShauna U., et al. “Urban Park Development and Pediatric Obesity Rates: A Quasi-Experiment Using Electronic Health Record Data.Int J Environ Res Public Health, vol. 13, no. 4, Apr. 2016, p. 411. Pubmed, doi:10.3390/ijerph13040411.
Goldsby TU, George BJ, Yeager VA, Sen BP, Ferdinand A, Sims DMT, Manzella B, Cockrell Skinner A, Allison DB, Menachemi N. Urban Park Development and Pediatric Obesity Rates: A Quasi-Experiment Using Electronic Health Record Data. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2016 Apr 8;13(4):411.

Published In

Int J Environ Res Public Health

DOI

EISSN

1660-4601

Publication Date

April 8, 2016

Volume

13

Issue

4

Start / End Page

411

Location

Switzerland

Related Subject Headings

  • Urban Renewal
  • Toxicology
  • Racial Groups
  • Pediatric Obesity
  • Parks, Recreational
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Environment
  • Electronic Health Records