More dense, populated neighborhoods inspire people to walk more

Adding strong evidence in support of ‘walkable’ neighborhoods, a large national study found that the built environment can indeed increase how much people walk. The study showed a strong connection between place and activity by studying about 11,000 twins, which helps control for family influences and genetic factors. The researchers found that each 1% increase in an area’s ‘walkability’ resulted in 0.42% increase in neighborhood walking. When scaled up, that means a 55% increase in the walkability of the surrounding neighborhood would result in about 23% more walking — or about 19 minutes a week for every resident living in that area. In terms of public health, that can add up to a big difference for the highly sedentary U.S. populace.
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