Active living in rural Appalachia: Using the rural active living assessment (RALA) tools to explore environmental barriers.

ABSTRACT: People residing in rural communities are more likely to be physically inactive and subsequently have elevated risks for chronic disease. Recent evidence has shown this could stem from environmental barriers, inadequate programming and policies directed at the promotion of physical activity (PA) in rural settings. The objective of this research was to assess active living features in rural towns and townships (n = 16) across seven counties in northwestern North Carolina (NC). The study utilized the Town-Wide and Street Segment components of the Rural Active Living Assessment (RALA) as well as the 2014 American Community Survey results. The assessments were conducted in the summer of 2016 in the rural Appalachia region of NC. Using the RALA town-wide assessment scoring system (0 - 100), the

SUBMITTER: Hege A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5704102 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature