Greener neighborhoods, slimmer… | Healthy Trees, Healthy Lives

Greener neighborhoods, slimmer children? Evidence from 4423 participants aged 6 to 13 years in the Longitudinal Study of Australian children

A beneficial effect of greenspace on BMI emerges as children grow older. However, there was little additional benefit after a modest amount of greenspace was met. Further research is needed to understand whether the drivers of this effect are from age-specific mechanisms, or whether the benefit of living in a greener neighborhood is accumulated through childhood.

Sanders, T; Feng, X; Fahey, P. et al

International Journal of Obesity Vol. 39, Aug. 2015, 1224-1229

Age was found to be an effect modifier of associations between greenspace and BMI for boys and girls. As children grew older, an inverse patterning of BMI by greenspace availability emerged. These findings held after adjustment for socio-economic circumstances for boys, though were less robust for girls after this adjustment.