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. 2022 Mar 22;19(7):3784.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph19073784.

Active Commuting and Healthy Behavior among Adolescents in Neighborhoods with Varying Socioeconomic Status: The NESLA Study

Benti Geleta Buli  1 , Annika Tillander  2 , Terence Fell  3 , Katarina Bälter  1   4
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Active Commuting and Healthy Behavior among Adolescents in Neighborhoods with Varying Socioeconomic Status: The NESLA Study

Benti Geleta Buli et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

(1) Background: The World Health Organization recommends active commuting as a source of physical activity. Active commuting is determined by various factors, including the socioeconomic status (SES) of families and neighborhoods, distance to schools, perceived neighborhood safety, lifestyles and availability of walkways and biking paths. This study aimed to assess factors associated with modes of transportation to and from school among adolescents aged 16-19 living in a middle-sized city in Sweden. (2) Method: Three hundred and fourteen students, of whom 55% were females, from schools in the city of Västerås participated in the study. Printed as well as web-based self-administered questionnaires were used to collect the data. (3) Results: Adolescents living in high SES neighborhoods were 80% more likely to bike or walk to school (OR = 1.80; CI: 1.01, 3.20) than adolescents living in low SES neighborhoods. Furthermore, active commuting was associated with higher consumption of fruits and vegetables (OR = 1.77; CI: 1.05, 2.97) and less consumption of junk foods (OR = 0.43; CI: 0.26, 0.71), as compared to passive commuting. (4) Conclusions: Active commuting is a cost-effective and sustainable source of regular physical activity and should be encouraged at a societal level.

Keywords: active transport; environment; health; lifestyle; school.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study, in the collection, analyses or interpretation of data, in the writing of the manuscript or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Socioeconomic status of neighborhoods, walk and bike paths in the municipality of Västerås and location of upper secondary schools included in the NESLA Study.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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