Critical Hours and Important Environments: Relationships between Afterschool Physical Activity and the Physical...

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health
• Pediatric Health
• Urban Planning

Background:

• Understanding factors influencing children's physical activity is crucial for public health.
• The built environment plays a significant role in shaping children's behavior.
• Afterschool hours represent a key period for physical activity and active transport.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the association between the physical environment and children's afterschool leisure time physical activity (PA).
• To investigate the relationship between the physical environment and children's active transport behaviors.
• To identify specific environmental features linked to increased PA and active travel in children.

Main Methods:

• A 7-day accelerometer and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) protocol was used for 255 children aged 10-12 years.
• Afterschool PA and active transport were identified using location- and speed-based algorithms.
• Children's environmental exposure was operationalized by integrating home, school, and transport environments into daily activity-spaces using Geospatial Information Systems (GIS).

Main Results:

• Proximity to greenspaces and shorter home-to-school distances were associated with higher afterschool leisure time PA and walking.
• Increased distances between home and school, coupled with pedestrian infrastructure, correlated with greater cycling.
• Environmental factors demonstrated significant associations with various afterschool physical activity and transport behaviors.

Conclusions:

• Environmental characteristics are linked to children's afterschool physical activity and active transport.
• Future research should explore specific behavioral domains and utilize natural experiments to understand environmental interactions.
• Targeting environmental modifications may promote physical activity and active transport in children.