Early-life neighborhood resources and adulthood mortality

The current study investigated whether early-life walkability and park access were associated with lower mortality risk into later adulthood.

Using data from the prospective St. Louis Baby Tooth Study cohort, we linked childhood residential addresses to environmental features on a historical street map. Mortality cases and causes of death were identified through a National Death Index search.

After adjusting for demographics and neighborhood socioeconomic factors, living in areas with higher park density during childhood was associated with a lower risk of non-accidental (HR = 0.95, 95% CI = 0.92, 0.98) and cardiovascular (CVD) mortality (HR = 0.92, 95% CI = 0.87,0.97). Growing up in areas with higher walkability was associated with a somewhat higher non-accidental (HR = 1.04, 95% CI = 0.98, 1.10) and CVD (HR = 1.09, 95% CI = 0.99, 1.20) mortality. Findings were consistent across strata based on sex, year of birth, and neighborhood socioeconomic status.

Early-life neighborhood resources such as walkability and park access have been hypothesized to be protective against long-term mortality risk; however, findings from this prospective study, while suggestive, only provided mixed support for these relationships. Studies with highly precise measures of greenspace and walkability, as well as key socioeconomic covariates, at various points in the life-course are needed to further investigate the associations identified in this study.