Citation

Klann A, Vu L, Ewing M, Fenton M, Pojednic R. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019; 16(17): e16173041.

Affiliation

Harvard Medical School, Institute of Lifestyle Medicine, Boston, MA 02115, USA. pojednic@g.harvard.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, MDPI: Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)

DOI

10.3390/ijerph16173041

PMID

31443359

Abstract

The built environment can promote physical activity in older adults by increasing neighborhood walkability. While efforts to increase walkability are common in urban communities, there is limited data related to effective implementation in rural communities. This is problematic, as older adults make up a significant portion of rural inhabitants and exhibit lower levels of physical activity. Translating lessons from urban strategies may be necessary to address this disparity. This review examines best practices from urban initiatives that can be implemented in rural, resource-limited communities. The review of the literature revealed that simple, built environment approaches to increase walkability include microscale and pop-up infrastructure, municipal parks, and community gardens, which can also increase physical activity in neighborhoods for urban older adults. These simple and cost-effective strategies suggest great potential for rural communities.

Language: en

Keywords

community gardens; exercise; infrastructure; older adults; parks; physical activity; recreation; walkability