UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA
PREVENTION RESEARCH CENTER NOTES
“Promoting Health through Physical Activity”

Welcome to 2004!   While reviewing this issue of the newsletter it struck me how much is happening in the scientific, practice and policy realms of physical activity promotion.  It’s really amazing to see the progress being made and the expanding nature of our efforts.  More emphasis is being placed on evaluating multi-disciplinary policy and environmental approaches to promoting physical activity, while very important research is moving forward at the individual behavior and organizational change levels.  In addition, policy makers, funding agencies, and advocates continue to support and respond to the unfolding scientific agendas and programmatic strategic plans.  Despite the many challenges we all face, it’s a wonderful and exciting time to be involved with physical activity promotion.  We look forward to working with all of you to achieve a very productive 2004.

Steve Hooker, PhD, Director
Delores Pluto, PhD, Newsletter Editor (dmpluto@sc.edu)
http://prevention.sph.sc.edu

NEWS YOU CAN USE: 10 Best Walking Cities in America

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN WASHINGTON: Senate Passes IMPACT Bill; TEA-21 Reauthorization Update

RESEARCH NOTES: PA in Amish Adults; Associations Between Community Perceptions and PA Levels; PA, BMI, Caloric Intake and CVD Mortality; Exercise Behavior Change in Women; New Chronic Disease Journal; Special Section on Built Environment and Health; Special Journal Issue on Physical Activity

REPORTS, SURVEYS, GUIDELINES, RESOURCES: Healthy Schools for Healthy Kids; Active Kids, Healthy Kids; Registry of Children’s Obesity Efforts; NASPE Recommends More Physical Activity for Kids; Free Fact Sheet on Childhood Obesity; Free VERB Materials; New ADA Guidelines for Recreation Facilities; Updated NIH Senior Health Web Site; Policy Profiles

PROMOTING ACTIVE COMMUNITIES: Partnerships to Promote Active Living; Neighborhood Walking Guide; New Active Living Resource; Active Living Research Funding; Active Living Leadership Awards

UPCOMING CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS: Proposals for Pro Walk/Bike 2004; Making Cities Livable Conference; Obesity and Built Environment Conference

10 BEST WALKING CITIES IN AMERICA:
The American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) and Prevention Magazine examined the most populated cities in the US for walking-friendly characteristics such as safe air quality, crime, how many people walk to work each day, pedestrian deaths, rainfall, and the number of parks, health clubs, sports stores and podiatrists. The survey identified the ten best walking cities as New York, San Francisco, Boston, Philadelphia, Seattle, Denver, Washington DC, Chicago, Portland, and Cleveland. Each city also has a government-appointed walking coordinator. To read more details, visit http://www.apma.org/citywalks/topcities.htm.
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For a list of PA related observances and events, visit the PA links section of our website at http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/PAlinks/index.htm.

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN WASHINGTON

SENATE PASSES IMPACT BILL:
The Improved Nutrition and Physical Activity Act (IMPACT Act), which amends the Public Health Service Act to address issues of overweight and obesity, was passed by the Senate on December 9, 2003. The focus will now shift to the House, where the Act (H.R. 716) remains in committee. Follow the bill’s progress at http://thomas.loc.gov.
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TEA-21 REAUTHORIZATION UPDATE:
The House and Senate are each considering different versions of the TEA-21 Reauthorization bill. The Senate version (SAFETEA, S. 1072) focuses on policy and avoids spelling out funding priorities, but the newly introduced Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (TEA-LU, H.R. 3005) provides more funding specifics and calls for $275 billion over the next six years. Visit www.tea3.org for more information.
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RESEARCH NOTES

PA IN AMISH ADULTS:
Physical activity was measured among a group of Old Order Amish adults, between 18 and 75 years of age, using pedometers, daily activity logs, and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ).  Only 4% of this population was classified as obese, and 26% overweight.  Amish men reported an average of 10 hours/week of vigorous activity and 43 hours/week of moderate activity.  Amish women reported an average of 3 hours/week of vigorous activity and 39 hours/week of moderate activity.  Amish men averaged over 18,000 steps/day and women averaged over 14,000 steps/day over the 7-day period.  Unlike other populations, this group did not appear to have a significant age-related decline in steps per day.  Bassett, Schneider, Huntington, et al. “Physical Activity in an Old Order Amish Community.” Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 36(1):79-85, 2004.
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ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN COMMUNITY PERCEPTIONS AND PA LEVELS:
Eighteen hundred men and women were surveyed regarding their perceptions of their community and its influence on physical activity.  The authors developed an 18-item measure of protective social factors (PSFs), which were measured in 8 dimensions:  social networks, participation, social cohesion, informal social control, sense of community, reciprocity, trust, and safety.  Although the PSF score was strongly correlated with meeting PA recommendations for whites, the measures were not associated with meeting recommendations for African-Americans.  The PSF measures also displayed different predictive ability for different income levels. Brennan, Baker, Haire-Joshu, et al. “Linking Perceptions of the Community to Behavior:  Are Protective Social Factors Associated With Physical Activity?” Health Education & Behavior, 30(6):740-755, 2003.
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PA, BMI, CALORIC INTAKE AND CVD MORTALITY:
Data from a 17-year epidemiological follow-up of the first NHANES survey was examined to determine the relationship of caloric intake, body mass index, and physical activity to CVD mortality.   When BMI, physical activity, and caloric intake were used in a single model, physical activity and obesity were each significantly related to CVD mortality, while calorie intake was not.  Fang, Wylie-Rosett, Cohen, et al.  “Exercise, Body Mass Index, Caloric Intake, and Cardiovascular Mortality.” American Journal of Preventive Medicine, (25)4:283-289, 2003.
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EXERCISE BEHAVIOR CHANGE IN WOMEN:
One hundred and fifteen sedentary women, aged 40-65 years, took part in an 18-month intervention designed to examine the effects of a stage-based intervention on exercise behavior change.  Participants were assigned to either a center-based program or a home-based program and within these to either vigorous or moderate exercise for first six months. For the remaining 12 months both groups were home-based and received supportive telephone calls every six weeks.  Written materials based on the anticipated stage of change for each phase of the program were distributed to participants in both groups.  Only 11% of those completing the project remained sedentary.  There was no difference between the exercise intervention groups in terms of the patterns of change; therefore the intervention was effective regardless of the setting or intensity.   Cox, Gorely, Puddey, et al. “Exercise Behaviour Change in 40 to 65-year old Women:  The SWEAT Study (Sedentary Women Exercise Adherence Trial).” British Journal of Health Psychology, 8:477-495, 2003.
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NEW CHRONIC DISEASE JOURNAL:
The inaugural issue of Preventing Chronic Disease: Public Health Research, Practice, and Policy is now available online at www.cdc.gov/pcd. The January issue includes “Population-based interventions engaging communities of color in healthy eating and active living: a review” by Yancey, Kumanyika, Ponce et al. All articles are available as HTML documents and as PDF files.
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SPECIAL SECTION ON BUILT ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH:
The December 2003 issue of the Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine (volume 80 no. 4) contains a special feature section on the built environment and health.
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SPECIAL JOURNAL ISSUE ON PHYSICAL ACTIVITY:
The October 2003 issue of the Pan American Journal of Public Health (Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública) is a special issue on physical activity. Electronic versions of many articles in this issue are available in both English (http://publications.paho.org/english/descriptions.cfm) and Spanish (http://publications.paho.org/spanish/descriptions.cfm).
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For additional summaries of recent research on promoting physically active lifestyles, visit the Research Updates section of our website at http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/updates/index.htm.

REPORTS, SURVEYS, GUIDELINES, RESOURCES

HEALTHY SCHOOLS FOR HEALTHY KIDS:
Two national polls show that teachers and parents overwhelmingly agree that schools should provide access to healthy foods and daily physical education as a means to address the childhood obesity epidemic. These and other poll results are detailed in Healthy Schools for Healthy Kids, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The report is based on two years of interviews, schools site visits and policy analyses. It can be viewed at http://www.rwjf.org/programareas/resources/product.jsp?id=20811&pid=1138&gsa=1
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ACTIVE KIDS, HEALTHY KIDS:
Active Kids, Healthy Kids aims to increase the number of children and youth in Nova Scotia who accumulate at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity every day. The initiative has six components that include program and policy development, active communities, active school communities, active community environments, public education, and evaluation and monitoring. Visit http://www.gov.ns.ca/ohp/srd/activekidshealthykids/ for more information.
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REGISTRY OF CHILDREN’S OBESITY EFFORTS:
Shaping America’s Youth is a national initiative to centralize information about the various ongoing efforts to fight obesity and inactivity among children and adolescents. Information will be obtained about intervention programs, funding sources, and ongoing research to increase physical activity and healthy eating behaviors and will be organized into a national, searchable database. A summary document will also be created. For more information on the initiative or to register your organization’s effort visit http://www.shapingamericasyouth.com or call 1-800-SAY-9221.
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NASPE RECOMMENDS MORE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOR KIDS:
The National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) has revised their physical activity recommendations for kids. In the revised report, Physical Activity for Children: A Statement of Guidelines for Children Ages 5-12, NASPE recommends at least 60 minutes and up to several hours of physical activity a day. Along with an increase in time spent being physically active, other recommendations are included in the report. Visit http://www.aahperd.org/naspe/template.cfm?template=pr_123103.html for more information on the revised guidelines.
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FREE FACT SHEET ON CHILDHOOD OBESITY:
The Center for Health and Health Care in Schools has created a four-page fact sheet that summarizes key findings on the background and health consequences of childhood obesity. Information about nutrition and physical activity in schools is also included. Download the free fact sheet from http://www.healthinschools.org/sh/obesityfs.asp.
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FREE VERB MATERIALS:
The VERB campaign is offering free materials for encouraging children to be more physically active. Stickers, temporary tattoos, and posters are available for ordering at no cost (while supplies last), and a student planner and classroom materials are available for downloading. Visit http://www.cdc.gov/youthcampaign/materials/order_form/ to place an order and to download materials.
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NEW ADA GUIDELINES FOR RECREATION FACILITIES:
This past September the U.S. Access Board created new guidelines for access to recreation facilities covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act. For more information, go to http://www.access-board.gov/news/rec-guides.htm (CDC Livability listserv 12/11/03).
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UPDATED NIH SENIOR HEALTH WEB SITE:
The NIH Senior Health web site has been updated and now includes new topics and a “talking web” feature. The site includes a section on Exercise for Older Adults with videos, demonstrations of exercises, and safety tips. The web site is a collaboration between the National Institute on Aging and the National Library of Medicine and can be found at http://nihseniorhealth.gov.
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POLICY PROFILES:
The Center for Health Improvement has added several new policy profiles to its Health Policy Coach website. Health Policy Coach contains prevention-focused policy strategies that have been implemented in communities across the county. Some of the new profiles focus on obesity, physical activity, and nutrition. To view the profiles visit http://www.healthpolicycoach.org/default.asp. (CDC-PA listserv)
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PROMOTING ACTIVE COMMUNITIES

PARTNERSHIPS TO PROMOTE ACTIVE LIVING:
Active Living by Design and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation have partnered with 25 cities across the country to promote active living. Each city will receive $200,000 in grant money to address land use, community design, transportation, architecture, trails, parks, and other issues that impact healthy lifestyles. (CDC PA Listserv)

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NEIGHBORHOOD WALKING GUIDE:
The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center has created a neighborhood walking guide that lists reasons people do not walk in neighborhoods and ways to address the issues. The guide can be found at http://www.walkinginfo.org/cps/guide.htm (from CENTERLINES 12/5/03).
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NEW ACTIVE LIVING RESOURCE:
The International City/County Management Association (ICMA), an Active Living Leadership partner, has created Active Living for Older Adults: Management Strategies for Healthy and Livable Communities Guide. Intended for local government leaders and managers, the guide explains active living and provides general strategies for beginning an active aging initiative. It also provides specific strategies for key areas, including streetscape design, transportation, housing, land use, and promoting awareness. Visit http://preview.tinyurl.com/5fgeny to access the guide.
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ACTIVE LIVING RESEARCH FUNDING:
Active Living Research, a national program of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, has posted a Call for Proposals for a new round of funding. Cycle One proposals are up to $600,000 for 3 years and the deadline for application is February 18, 2004. Cycle Two is for proposals requesting up to $150,000 for up to two years and the deadline is September 1, 2004. For more information visit http://www.activelivingresearch.org.
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ACTIVE LIVING LEADERSHIP AWARDS:
Active Living Leadership has awarded new grants to help state and local leaders make their communities more activity-friendly. This second round of grants, totaling $1 million, was awarded to several national organizations, including the Local Government Commission; the National Governors Association; the International City/County Management Association; the National Conference of State Legislatures; and the Joint Center for Sustainable Communities. These organizations will work with cities and states to retrofit neighborhoods for more pedestrian and bicycle accommodations, to adopt active living policies, and to locate schools in walkable communities.
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UPCOMING CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS

PROPOSALS FOR PRO WALK/BIKE 2004:
Presentation proposals will be accepted until February 15 for Pro Walk/Bike 2004, the 13th International Symposium on Bicycling and Walking. The conference will be held September 7-10, 2004 in Victoria, British Columbia and the theme is Creating Active Communities. More information can be found at http://www.bikewalk.org/PWPB2004/paper_submissions.htm.
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MAKING CITIES LIVABLE CONFERENCE:
The 39th International Making Cities Livable Conference: The Healthy Community and the Built Environment will be held March 15-19, 2004 in Sarasota, FL. A range of topics about communities and the built environment will be covered, including increasing walkability through design, urban lifestyle and transportation policy, planning for bicycling and walking, and suburban sprawl as a health risk factor. Go to http://www.livablecities.org/ for more information.
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OBESITY AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT CONFERENCE:
The NIH Obesity and Built Environment Conference will be held in Washington, DC on May 24-26. The conference theme is Improving Public Health Through Community Design, and it will focus on the how the built environment impacts obesity via access to physical activity and food. Visit http://www.niehs.nih.gov/drcpt/beoconf/ for more information and to register.
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For a more complete list of conferences and workshops, visit the PA links section of our website at http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/PAlinks/index.htm.

To submit an item, please e-mail Delores Pluto at dmpluto@sc.edu.

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For continuing discussions about physical activity, join the Physical Activity and Public Health On-Line Network listserv. Instructions are located on our website, at http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/newsletter/commands.htm.

The USC Prevention Research Center is a member of the CDC Prevention Research Center’s National Network, consisting of 28 Centers in the U.S.  For more information about the PRC National Network, visit http://www.cdc.gov/prc.

Funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention