FYI
well wishes,
Kate

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: USC Prevention Research Center Notes - 10/2006
Date: Mon, 2 Oct 2006 15:37:39 -0400
From: USCPRC USCPRC <USCPRC@...>
Reply-To: USCPRC USCPRC <USCPRC@...>
To: PRCNEWS@...

****UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA
PREVENTION RESEARCH CENTER NOTES****
“Promoting Health through Physical Activity”

I have benefited tremendously from utilizing the USC PRC Listserv twice in the
past several months (if you are not a subscriber, directions on joining the
Listserv are provided at the end of the newsletter). This list reaches over
1,200 persons throughout the world that have expertise in many facets of
physical activity research and practice. Each time that I have approached
members of the Listserv with a question, I have received timely advice and
information that has helped me make well-informed decisions. Many times the
information I received hadn’t yet been disseminated because it was “hot off the
press.” This was very gratifying and extremely helpful. I would encourage you
to utilize this resource often. After all, we’re all in this together!

Steven P. Hooker, PhD, Director
Delores Pluto, PhD, Newsletter Editor (dmpluto@...)
http://prevention.sph.sc.edu
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IN THIS ISSUE - September/October 2006

NEWS YOU CAN USE: New “Eat Smart. Play Hard.” Web Pages

RESEARCH NOTES: Neighborhood PA Questionnaire; Why Canadians Cycle More Than
Americans; Evaluation of Physical Activity Programs

REPORTS, SURVEYS, GUIDELINES, RESOURCES: New Guidelines for PA in Schools;
Public Health and Built Environment; Community Guide PA Recommendations

PROMOTING ACTIVE COMMUNITIES: Building Healthy Communities for Older Adults

UPCOMING CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS: NCBW Announces Round VI of Walkable
Community Workshops; Active Aging 2006

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NEWS YOU CAN USE

NEW “EAT SMART. PLAY HARD.” WEB PAGES: The USDA Food and Nutrition Service
launched two new web pages that will help kids, parents, and caregivers put the
new Dietary Guidelines and My Pyramid recommendations into action. The “Eat
Smart. Play Hard.” kids' web page (www.fns.usda.gov/eatsmartplayhardkids)
provides kids with interactive learning and skill-building experiences in a
virtual community setting, and encourages and motivates them to make better
lifestyle choices using kid-friendly, entertaining techniques. The new Healthy
Lifestyle web page (www.fns.usda.gov/eatsmartplayhardhealthylifestyle) provides
parents and other caregivers with tools for healthy living including low cost
menus and recipes that meet the new dietary guidelines. [SCCOPE News and
Updates, 9/21/06]

For a list of PA related observances and events, visit the PA links section of
our website at http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/PAlinks/index.htm.


RESEARCH NOTES

NEIGHBORHOOD PA QUESTONNAIRE: The Neighborhood Physical Activity Questionnaire
(NPAQ) was designed to differentiate between recreation and transport walking
both inside and outside of the neighborhood and to establish an overall index of
physical activity behavior. The NPAQ was designed to overcome three specific
challenges: the instrument had to 1) capture walking levels locally, 2) be a
stable measure of habitual exercise and 3) differentiate between recreational
and transport walking. The NPAQ was modeled on the International Physical
Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) and the Active Australia Survey. A sample of 82
faculty and staff from local universities participated in a test-retest
reliability study. The study concluded that the NPAQ is reliable for studies on
environmental correlates of walking within the neighborhood. The tool reliably
measures walking and total PA and can differentiate between recreation and
transportation related walking inside and outside the neighbo!
rhood. Giles-Corti B, Temperio A, Cutt H, Pikora T, et al. Development of a
reliable measure of walking within and outside the local neighborhood: RESIDE’s
Neighborhood Physical Activity Questionnaire. Preventive Medicine,
42(1):455-459, 2006.

WHY CANADIANS CYCLE MORE THAN AMERICANS: A review of bike usage in Canada and
the U.S. revealed Canadians ride bicycles more than Americans due to land-use
and transport policy differences. Canadians have shorter average trip distances
than Americans due to denser, mixed-land use in Canadian cities. In addition,
Canadians own fewer cars than Americans as Canadians’ average incomes are lower
than Americans, and the cost of purchasing and operating a car is higher in
Canada. Furthermore, Canadians cities are more conducive to cycling due to
accessible bike paths and lanes, sufficient bicycle parking, traffic calmed
neighborhoods, and stricter enforcement of traffic regulations. However, cycling
remains marginal in both the U.S and Canada compared to Western Europe.
Additional bike paths and lanes, bike parking, and cycling education and
promotional programs are suggested to further increase bike use in the U.S. and
in Canada. Pucher J & Buehler R. Why Canadians cycle more tha!
n Americans: A comparative analysis of bicycling trends and policies.
Transport Policy, 13, 265-279, 2006.

EVALUATION OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PROGRAMS: The August 6 issue of Evaluation and
Program Planning (Vol 29, Issue 3) was just released, which contains a special
section devoted to the evaluation of physical activity programs. Nine papers
are included with topics including evaluation of programs designed for older
adults and underserved youth; programs to increase walking; programs targeting
individual, organization and policy change; and programs implemented at the
community, state and national level. As such, the papers should be of keen
interest to both researchers and practitioners. The table of contents and
abstracts may be found at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01497189.

For additional summaries of recent research on promoting physically active
lifestyles, visit the Research Updates section of our website at
http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/updates/index.htm.

REPORTS, SURVEYS, GUIDELINES, RESOURCES

NEW PA GUIDELINES FOR SCHOOLS: In the September 12, 2006 issue of Circulation, a
scientific statement from the American Heart Association takes a comprehensive
look at the role of schools in promoting physical activity among students.
Policy and practice recommendations are included for physical education and
other sources of daily physical activity. See the press release (which includes
a summary of the recommendations) at:
http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3041345. The citation
for the scientific statement is: Pate RR, Davis MG, Robinson TN, Stone EJ, et
al. Promoting physical activity in children and youth: A leadership role for
schools: A scientific statement from the American Heart Association Council on
Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Metabolism (Physical Activity Committee) in
collaboration with the Councils on Cardiovascular Disease in the Young and
Cardiovascular Nursing. Circulation, 114(11);1214-1224, 2006.

PUBLIC HEALTH AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT: A report entitled “Understanding the
Relationship between Public Health and the Built Environment” presents a
comprehensive picture of the elements of the built environment that have the
greatest positive impact on these public health outcomes based on research. The
report focuses on five public health topics - respiratory and cardiovascular
health, fatal and non-fatal injuries, physical activity, social capital and
mental health. One chapter focuses on physical activity and the relationship
between the built environment and rates of walking, cycling and mass transit.
The report was prepared for the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the
Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), and the Natural Resources Defense Council
(NRDC) to help prepare of a rating system for neighborhoods called LEED-ND
(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighborhood Development).
The report can be downloaded at:
http://www.cnu.org/aboutcnu/index.cfm?formAction=initiative_detail&initiative_id\
=55.
[SCCOPE News and Updates, 9/21/06]

COMMUNITY GUIDE PA RECOMMENDATIONS: Three new summary sheets have been added to
the website for The Guide to Community Preventive Services about policy and
environmental approaches to promoting physical activity. These documents
summarize the findings concerning street-scale and community scale urban design
and land use policies and practices and transportation and travel policies and
practices. A detailed report on the evidence and findings appears in the Journal
of Physical Activity and Health, 3(Suppl 1):S55-S76, 2006. To view the new
summary sheets, go to http://www.thecommunityguide.org/pa/default.htm.


PROMOTING ACTIVE COMMUNITIES

BUILDING HEALTHY COMMUNITIES FOR OLDER ADULTS: The U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), with partner organizations across the country, is developing a
national pilot program called "Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging,"
to recognize communities that factor into community planning, environmental
considerations and the need for older adults to be physically active. The goal
of the program is to raise awareness about the importance of linking Smart
Growth with the need for and desire by older adults to be physically active. For
more information about the program, go to http://www.epa.gov/aging/bhc/.


UPCOMING CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS

NCBW ANNOUNCES ROUND VI OF WALKABLE COMMUNITY WORKSHOPS: The National Center for
Bicycling & Walking has announced that applications are now available for the
Spring/Summer 2007 round of Walkable Community Workshops (WCWs). Applications
are due by October 27th. More information about the workshops and a downloadable
application can be found at:
http://www.bikewalk.org/workshopapplication.php. Direct questions about the WCW
program or the application to Mark Plotz at mark@..., or call him at
(301) 656-4220.

ACTIVE AGING 2006: The 4th Annual ICAA Conference: Active Aging 2006 will be
held November 15-17, 2006 in Las Vegas, Nevada. For conference brochure and
more information, go to http://www.icaa.cc/convention.htm.

For a more complete list of conferences and workshops, visit the PA links
section of our website at http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/PAlinks/index.htm.

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Writers: Lara Peck, Delores Pluto, Anna Price, Matt Thomas

This and past issues of the “University of South Carolina Prevention Research
Center Notes” are available on our website at
http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/Newsletter/index.htm. To submit an item, please
e-mail Delores Pluto at dmpluto@....

To subscribe or unsubscribe to this newsletter, e-mail the Prevention Research
Center at USCPRC@.... When subscribing, please include your name, e-mail
address, title, and organizational affiliation. There is no subscription cost.
If you have an e-mail filter in place that only allows messages from approved
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For continuing discussions about physical activity, join the Physical Activity
and Public Health On-Line Network listserv. Instructions are located on our
website, at http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/newsletter/commands.htm#_Subscribe.

The USC Prevention Research Center is a member of the CDC Prevention Research
Center’s National Network, consisting of 33 Centers in the U.S. For more
information about the PRC National Network, visit http://www.cdc.gov/prc.
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Prevention Research Center, University of South Carolina
921 Assembly Street, Columbia, South Carolina 29208
803-777-4253

This publication was supported by Cooperative Agreement Number 1-U48-DP-000051
from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Its contents are
solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the
official views of the CDC.

The University of South Carolina does not discriminate in educational or
employment opportunities or decisions for qualified persons on the basis of
race, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, or
veteran status.
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