title: Changing social and built environments to promote physical activity: recommendations from low income, urban women.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Middle age and older (mean = 58.7 y), racial/ethnic minority women report low levels of physical activity. Recommendations to change the social and built environments to promote physical activity in this group are underdeveloped. Two research questions guided this study: What environmental changes are recommended by racial/ethnic minority women? What policies are related to the environmental changes?
  
  
  METHODS
  The findings from nine Nominal Group Technique sessions with 45 subjects were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  More police protection, cleaner streets, removal of drugs from streets, more street lights, walking groups, and free gyms were prioritized by subjects as the most important recommendations. The relevant policies included municipal, police department, sanitation department, public works, and transportation department.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Racial/ethnic minority women living in low income, urban areas recommend improvements that affect overall quality of life. Meeting basic needs may be a prerequisite for use of physical activity resources.
authors.affiliation: University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Wendell C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: James F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Sallis
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lees
authors.forename: Joseph T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Hepworth
authors.forename: Karina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Feliz
authors.forename: Devin C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Volding
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cassels
authors.forename: Jonathan N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Tobin
mesh_terms: D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000368:Aged; D001837:Body Weights and Measures; D003256:Community Participation / Q000379:methods; D004779:Environment Design; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D035846:Law Enforcement; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity; D016495:Police; D011203:Poverty / Q000208:ethnology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012499:Sanitation; D012931:Social Environment; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016387:Women's Health / Q000208:ethnology*