Environmental correlates of children's active transportation: A systematic literature review

Abstract

This systematic review investigated the environmental (physical, economic, socio-cultural and political) correlates of active transportation (AT) among young people aged 5–18 years to better inform the promotion of active living. Greater distance, increasing household income and increasing car ownership are consistently associated with lower rates of AT among children. Having a non-white ethnic background has a convincing positive association with AT. Having recreation facilities and walk or bike paths present are possibly associated with higher rates of AT. Further research requires longitudinal and intervention studies, utilizing multi-level design methodologies and objective measures of environmental attributes.

Introduction

Adequate physical activity is essential in children's healthy development and in helping to reduce chronic disease throughout their lifespan (US Department of Health and Human Services, 1996; World Health Organization, 2008). However, there is widespread concern that children's physical activity levels are decreasing and becoming insufficient for maintaining health (Dollman et al., 2005; Sleap and Warburton 1996). Of note, more than half of the school-aged children surveyed from 34 countries (Janssen et al., 2005) failed to meet guidelines of at least 60 min of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity every day, recognized by the World Health Organization and others (Cavill et al., 2001; Pate et al., 1998; World Health Organization, 2008). In this review, consistent with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (United Nations, 1989), any person below the age of 18 years, unless under the law applicable to the child majority is attained earlier, is considered a child.

There has been much research on how to increase physical activity in the lives of children (van Sluijs et al., 2007). Some researchers have argued that a sustainable approach could involve increasing children's habitual forms of physical activity, such as using AT (Duncan et al., 2008; Hohepa et al., 2008; Racioppi et al., 2002). While the causal relationship is unclear, it has also been found that children who use AT to and/or from school are more physically active, have higher levels of energy expenditure and are more likely to meet physical activity guidelines than children who are driven (Mackett et al., 2005; Timperio et al., 2006).

In order to promote AT among children in an informed fashion, it is first necessary to understand the environmental factors which facilitate or impede it. While AT has been examined in adults (Wendel-Vos et al., 2007), relatively little is known about its bearing in children. Two relevant literature reviews examining AT have been conducted (McMillan, 2005; Panter et al., 2008), but they have used a narrow definition of environment, limited to urban form correlates and the physical environment. The current systematic review was therefore undertaken with the aim of identifying those factors in the broader physical, economic, socio-cultural and political environment found to be most highly associated with the tendency for children to use AT.