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

The USC PRC’s Associate Director, Dr. Delores Pluto, has accepted a position with the SC Dept. of Education’s Healthy School’s program. She will be coordinating administration of the Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance (YRBS) system, disseminating its results, and providing training and assistance to districts and schools to implement effective school health policies. This is right up Delores’ alley, as she has been involved with environmental and policy approaches to promoting PA and health for many years. She has served effectively as editor of this newsletter, evaluator of our center-level activities, and PI of our center’s role in the PRC Healthy Aging Network and PA & Policy Research Network. Her skills, support, and enthusiasm will be missed, but we wish her the very best in all of her future personal and professional pursuits.

Steven P. Hooker, PhD, Director
Delores Pluto, PhD, Newsletter Editor (dmpluto@sc.edu)
http://prevention.sph.sc.edu
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IN THIS ISSUE – September-October 2008

NEWS YOU CAN USE: Map My Run; Kranking: The Next Revolution in Fitness; Walk to School Month

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN WASHINGTON: USC Researcher Testifies

RESEARCH NOTES: Activity Improves Cognitive Function; Physical Activity and Neighborhood Parks; Health Passport; Physical Activity in Children Ages 9-15

REPORTS, SURVEYS, GUIDELINES, RESOURCES: Investment in Disease Prevention; Strategies for Promoting Health Environments; Safe Routes to School Final Report; Social Support Encourages Walking

PROMOTING ACTIVE COMMUNITIES: Public Health and the Built Environment; Places for Physical Activity; Bikes4work; Bicycle Friendly Business

UPCOMING CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS:International Conference on Diet and Activity Methods(ICDAM 7); 2008 European Public Health Conference; National Trails Symposium; Deadline for ACSM Abstracts

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NEWS YOU CAN USE

MAP MY RUN. Plot your running and walking routes with this innovative website. View elevation, topographical maps, and street level views with just a few mouse clicks. Once your map is complete you can quickly view it in 3D, satellite maps, or share it with friends. Go to http://www.mapmyrun.com/ [Source: AUS PA NET, 8/15/2008]

KRANKING: THE NEXT REVOLUTION IN FITNESS. There is a new, state-of-the-art, cool, and hip training method that provides a much-needed venue where individuals of all abilities can train together and have fun. Called a Krankcycle, it was developed by Johnny Goldberg, the inventor of the spinning class, and was based on the hand-cycle, or arm cycle ergometer, used by persons with disabilities. The Krankcycle features independent crank arms; adjustable headstock and self tensioning chain; elliptical bends in the frame to encourage sitting, standing, and increased movement options for creative choreography; it’s smaller and easier to move, much like the spinning cycle, and costs less.  Read more at http://www.ncpad.org/fitt/fact_sheet.php?sheet=638. [Source: NCPAD News, 7(8) 2008]

WALK TO SCHOOL MONTH
October 1-31, 2008
International: http://www.iwalktoschool.org/
US: http://www.walktoschool.org/

For a more complete list of 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

USC RESEARCHER TESTIFIES. Dr. Russ Pate, an exercise physiologist at the University of South Carolina, testified before the House Committee on Education and Labor on July 24, 2008 as it deliberated on the H.R. 3257, Fitness Integrated with Teaching Kids Act (Fit Kids),. Dr. Pate stated that “A new field of research is providing encouraging evidence that physical activity may help with brain function and activity, and other recent studies have found a positive correlation between aerobic fitness and academic performance. Normal-weight children also have lower rates of school absenteeism than obese children and may also have reduced rates of tobacco use, insomnia, depression, and anxiety.” The full text of this testimony is at http://edlabor.house.gov/hearings/fc-2008-07-24.shtml.

RESEARCH NOTES

ACTIVITY IMPROVES COGNITIVE FUNCTION.  A study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society looked at women between the ages of 80 and 84 to determine whether an objective measure of daytime movement is associated with better cognitive function. For an average of three days, 2,736 women wore an accelerometer to objectively measure how much they moved during the day. None of the women showed evidence of dementia.  Women in the group with the highest amount of movement had better results on cognitive tests. The results were independent of physical function, health conditions, health-related behaviors or self-reported walking. Barnes, Blackwell, Stone, et al. “Cognition in Older Women: The Importance of Daytime Movement.” Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, Published Online: July 24, 2008.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND NEIGHBORHOOD PARKS. Researchers collected observational data on 28 specific features from 33 parks, and 7-day physical activity logs from adult residents to study whether park size, number of features in the park, and distance to a park were related to its usage. Results showed that number of features was a significant predictor of increased use for physical activity, while size and distance were not. Park facilities (e.g., bike trails or ball fields) were more strongly related to park-based physical activity than park amenities (e.g., drinking fountains or picnic area).  Of facilities, trails had the strongest relationship with park use for physical activity. Kaczynski, Potwarka, Saelens. “Association of Park Size, Distance, and Features with Physical Activity in Neighborhood Parks.” American Journal of Public Health, 98(8): 1451-1456.

HEALTH PASSPORT. The Health Passport program was a collaborative effort with school PE teachers, health educators, and researchers. Teachers used the Health Passport process to hold students accountable for their involvement in physical activity outside of PE class over 3-7 months.  Four groups of students (average n=25) were assigned to different levels of physical education lessons given by four different health educators. Results showed that children displayed five different profiles of involvement (regularity, transformation, bursting out and burning out, keeping aloof, and disguise) in completing the tasks related to their passport. PE teachers chose to trust students’ self-management capacity instead of using a formal evaluation to hold them accountable. Findings show that PE teachers can effectively promote physical activity beyond the school environment when they use specific strategies. Blais. “A Health Passport to Promote Children’s Regular Practice of Physical Activity Outside of School.” Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 27(3), 416-433, 2008.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN CHILDREN AGES 9-15. A large, geographically diverse population of youth from the U.S. was followed from birth to 15 years with a common study protocol as a part of the U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) study of Early Child Care. The protocol included interviews as well as home, school, and neighborhood observations. Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity (MVPA) was measured using accelerometers. Results showed a steep decrease in MVPA with age, from approximately 3 hours of MVPA on both weekend and weekdays at age 9 to 49 minutes per weekday and 35 minutes per week-end at age 15. Boys were more active than girls, and the rate of decrease in MVPA was the same for boys and girls. The average age when youth crossed below the recommended amount of physical activity on weekends and weekdays was 14.7 & 13.4 years for boys and 13.1 & 12.6 years for girls respectively. Nader, Bradley, Houts, et al. “Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity From Ages 9 to 15 Years.” JAMA, 300(3): 295-305, 2008.

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

INVESTMENT IN DISEASE PREVENTION PAYS OFF. A small, strategic investment in disease prevention could result in significant savings in health care costs, according to a new report released by the Trust for America’s Health. The report, “Prevention for a Healthier America: Investments in Disease Prevention Yield Significant Savings, Stronger Communities,” finds that an investment of $10 per person per year in proven community-based programs to increase physical activity, improve nutrition, and prevent smoking and other tobacco use could save more than $16 billion annually within five years (a return of $5.60 for every $1 spent). The report is available at http://www.healthyamericans.org/. [Source: Press Release, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 7/17/2008]

STRATEGIES FOR PROMOTING HEALTHY ENVIRONMENTS. On behalf of the Healthy Eating Active Living Convergence Partnership, the Prevention Institute has developed two briefs that provide strategies for promoting organizational policies and practices in support of healthy eating and physical activity.  The briefs identify opportunities for collaboration and focus on environments such as community, schools, workplaces, healthcare, government, and media.  The resources can be found at http://www.preventioninstitute.org/highlights.html and
http://preview.tinyurl.com/4r7ww3.

SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL FINAL REPORT.  The National Safe Routes to School Task Force has released its final report, “Safe Routes to School: A Transportation Legacy.” This report represents the culmination of nearly two years of work by a Task Force of national experts in transportation, education, and child health and safety. Forty-two states have announced funding for local and/or statewide programs involving nearly 2,600 schools. The remaining states are either working to set up their programs or are in various stages of the first application cycle. To access the full report, visit www.saferoutesinfo.org/task_force. [Source: “American Bicyclist Update”, 8/4/2008]

SOCIAL SUPPORT ENCOURAGES WALKING. The “Step & Stride with Ruby” walking program provided 21 Red Hat Society chapters (totaling 556 women) with a start-up kit, step counters and a log to record their steps. The chapters recorded the total number of steps their participants walked on a public website to foster competition between chapters; participants in the three chapters with the largest number of steps at the end of the year also received cash prizes.  A majority of participants (87%) stayed with the program for the full year. For more findings and a link to the full report, go to http://www.aarp.org/research/health/prevention/step_stride.html
[Source ICAA Research Review, 8(28), 2008]

PROMOTING ACTIVE COMMUNITIES

PUBLIC HEALTH AND THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT. The American Planning Association has created a talking points webpage as part of the American Institute of Architects’ “Communities by Design” program. These talking points provide facts and figures that support the argument for including public health concerns in decisions affecting the built environment. Architects can design environments that incorporate physical activity into people's daily routines, give them a community with attractive destinations within walking or biking distance, and keep safety in mind with lighting, ''eyes on the street'' design, traffic calming, and other techniques to improve pedestrian and bicyclist safety. Read more at http://www.aia.org/liv_TP_health. [Source:  New Smart Growth Network State by State News Headlines, July 2008]

PLACES FOR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY. “Facilitating Development of a Community Trail and Promoting Its Use to Increase Physical Activity among Youth and Adults” is an action guide from the Partnership for Prevention. Although there are many options for modifying the environment to allow for increased physical activity, community trails have a unique advantage in that they can accommodate different types of physical activity by people of all ages. Read more at http://www.prevent.org/actionguides/CommunityTrail.pdf

BIKES4WORK. The Bicycle Federation of Australia has launched a new service to help organizations set up bike fleets in their workplaces. Workplace bike fleets are similar to car fleets – they are available for employees to use for work trips where riding a bike is more convenient than other transport modes. There is a toolkit to assist organizations that may be considering implementation of a bike fleet. It can also be used by individuals who are trying to convince management of the benefits of a fleet. The toolkit can be accessed at www.travelsmart.gov.au/toolkits/bikefleets. [Source: AusPAnet E-News, 8/28/2008]

BICYCLE FRIENDLY BUSINESS. A new Bicycle Friendly Business program was launched in June by the League of American Bicyclists. It offers resources and technical assistance to help businesses create the culture and facilities to promote bicycling. The program appeals to businesses' corporate social responsibility and greening efforts. Learn more at http://preview.tinyurl.com/3obz2f.

UPCOMING CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON DIET AND ACTIVITY METHODS (ICDAM 7).  June 5-7, 2009: After introducing physical activity as a theme at the last meeting (Denmark 2006), diet and physical activity methods will be equally represented in all aspects of the program, hence, the change of the name, but not the acronym, of the meeting from the International Conference on Dietary Assessment Methods to International Conference on Diet and Activity Methods. The goal is to provide a forum for sharing knowledge on the assessment of diet and physical activity by promoting a better understanding of their strengths and limitations; stimulating international and interdisciplinary research focusing on analytical issues; and identifying future research priorities. For more information:  http://www.icdam.org/.

2008 EUROPEAN PUBLIC HEALTH CONFERENCE, "I-Health: health and innovation in Europe." Lisbon, Portugal, November 6-8, 2008. http://www.eupha.org/

NATIONAL TRAILS SYMPOSIUM, INNOVATIVE TRAILS: “Transforming the American Way of Life.” San Antonio, TX, November, 15-18, 2008. http://www.americantrails.org/2008/index.html

NOTE:  The deadline for abstracts for the 2009 American College of Sports Medicine (Seattle, WA, May 27-30, 2009) is November 8, 2008. http://preview.tinyurl.com/3jlhpk.

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.
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This and past issues of the “University of South Carolina Prevention Research Center Notes” are available on our website at http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/Newsletter/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 33 Centers in the U.S. For more information about the PRC National Network, visit http://www.cdc.gov/prc.

Prevention Research Center
Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina
921 Assembly Street, Columbia, South Carolina 29208
803-777-4253

This publication was supported by Cooperative Agreement Number 5-U48-DP-000051 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the CDC.

The University of South Carolina does not discriminate in educational or employment opportunities or decisions for qualified persons on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, or veteran status.