Are school-based measures of walkability and greenness associated with modes of commuting to school? Findings from a student survey in Ontario, Canada.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

In Canada, students are increasingly reliant on motorized vehicles to commute to school, and few meet the recommended overall physical activity guidelines. Infrastructure and built environments around schools may promote active commuting to and from school, thereby increasing physical activity. To date, few Canadian studies have examined this research question.

Methods

This study is a cross-sectional analysis of 11,006 students, aged 11-20, who participated in the 2016/2017 Ontario Student Drug Use and Health Survey. The remote sensing-derived Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), at a buffer of 500 m from the schools' locations, was used to characterize greenness, while the 2016 Canadian Active Living Environments (Can-ALE) measure was used for walkabili

SUBMITTER: Cottagiri SA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7910329 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature