Neighborhood Obesity Case Study

Another strategy to prevent future weight gain and reduce obesity in populations is urban planning, and creating environments with incentive for healthy eating and physical exercise. Effective urban planning and community design encourages the population to travel to work using other modes of transportation, such as biking or walking, and ensures that the meets of individuals are being met in their community (Frank, Andersen & Schmid 2004). This can be done by creating communities where schools, shopping centres, gyms, hospitals and other infrastructure is a walkable distance away, which encourages the individual to walk in their community rather than drive, increasing physical activity (Ewing et al 2003; Frank, Andersen & Schmid 2004). Other ways to increase health through urban planning may be to create parks and playgrounds, open fresh food markets, and increase participation in community events.
This is a primary level of prevention; it targets the population rather than the ‘at risk’ group and focuses on prevention rather than treatment.
It could also be considered a secondary intervention, because it encourages weight loss in overweight and obese individuals, as well as maintaining the health of the population not at risk (Ewing et al 2003). Secondary interventions address the health of at-risk individuals (Fleming & Parker 2012). By creating a supportive environment, community designs encourage healthy choices, targeting people at a healthy BMI and individuals with a higher BMI. Urban planning targets a community and the people who use the community resources; if this kind of planning was applied everywhere it could be universal. However, urban planning now usually affects the individuals living in the community. Urban planning has a very long-term effect; it may take a few years before any evidence of effectiveness
appears.
Urban planning addresses the Create Supportive Environments and the Develop Personal Skills action areas of the Ottawa Charter, because it creates conditions which maximise individuals’ health, promote healthy habits, such as walking or buying fresh food, and assist in creating healthy alternative, i.e. healthy food over junk food (Fleming & Parker 2012; Figure 2). Additionally, if the community design encourages community interaction and connections, it may address the Strengthen Community Action area, because it would encourage the members of the community to take initiative over their own health and wellbeing, and provide additional social support to other members (Fleming & Parker 2012).
It is recommended for adults to accumulate between 2.5 to 5 hours of moderate physical activity every week (Department of Health 2014). A study done by Ewing et al (2003) found that having more sprawling communities, with resources further away, increased weight and prevalence of hypertension, and decreased levels of exercise. By creating walkable environments, individuals are more like to be physically active and less likely to have a high BMI (Sallis & Glanz 2009; Frank, Andersen & Schmid 2004; Durand et al 2011). Similarly, having increased access to supermarkets and fresh fruit and vegetables tend to have lower levels of obesity and have healthier eating habits (Larson, Story & Nelson 2009). The built environment has a significant impact on the risk of developing obesity, and the creation of supportive communities can result in a more healthy community over time (Frank, Andersen & Schmid 2004).
However, it may be hard to implement this prevention automatically, because it is costly and requires time and workers. This intervention is most likely to occur in high socioeconomic communities, which can afford to upkeep and redesign their environment. For this intervention to have a significant impact on the BMI of the population, money and resources need to be invested in lower socioeconomic communities to create social support, safe environments and increase health (Lake & Townshend 2006). Preventative medicine normally takes several years before showing visible effects, therefore it may not seem to the government that the intervention is beneficial to the community at first. Other factors that may affect the implementation of this intervention is the location of the community; such interventions are more likely to happen in metro areas rather than rural, which is not ideal as people living in rural communities are more likely to be overweight or obese (ABS 2015). However, if implemented correctly, it could have a significant impact on the BMI of whole populations.