Personal and environmental influences of unhealthy weight gain in a regional community

Evidence is accumulating demonstrating how the environments in which we live influence our choices to engage in physically active lifestyles, however, little research exists identifying the link between unhealthy weight gain and local urban environments. This study examines the association between self-report and GIS-derived measures of the local neighbourhood and the likelihood of being overweight or obese. Selfreport measures of activity level, television viewing and the environment were acquired by telephone survey (N = 1281) of the Rockhampton population. Activity level was determined using the Active Australia questionnaire; self-report measures of the environment were derived from social-ecological models and administered within the CATI survey performed in October 2001. Euclidian and street network distances were determined using GIS from the CATI respondent's homes to the most proximate busy street, newsagents, stores and public open spaces. Results from logistic regression revealed that when adjusting for age, gender, education level and activity level perceiving the neighbourhood to be safe to walk in was positively associated (OR 1.66, 95% CI 1.05-2.62) with the likelihood of being overweight. When adjusting for the identified variables, people who reported seeing people walking in the neighbourhood (OR 0.50, 95% CI 0.27-0.93), and perceived the footpaths to be in good condition (OR 0.68, 95% CI 0.47-0.99) were less likely to be obese. People agreeing that there were busy streets to cross when walking were more likely to be obese (OR.1.54, 95% CI 1.03-2.29) than those who did not agree with this statement. These findings suggest that various characteristics of the environment influence unhealthy weight gain, some of which can be modified. The authors acknowledgethe support of Queensland Health in the completion of this project.