title: Association between perceived neighbourhood characteristics, physical activity and diet quality: results of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil).
abstract: The study explores associations between perceived neighbourhood characteristics, physical activity and diet quality, which in Latin America and Brazil have been scarcely studied and with inconsistent results.
  
  
  
  We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 14,749 individuals who participated in the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (Estudo Longitudinal de Saúde do Adulto, ELSA-Brasil) baseline. The study included current and retired civil servants, aged between 35 and 74 years, from universities and research institutes in six Brazilian states. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) long form was used to characterize physical activity during leisure time and commuting; additional questions assessed how often fruit and vegetables were consumed, as a proxy for diet quality. Neighbourhood characteristics were evaluated by the "Walking Environment" and "Availability of Healthy Foods" scales originally used in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA). Associations were examined using multinomial logistic regression.
  
  
  
  Perceiving a more walkable neighbourhood was positively associated with engaging in leisure time physical activity and doing so for longer weekly. Compared with those who saw their neighbourhood as less walkable, those who perceived it as more walkable had 1.69 (95 % CI 1.57-1.83) and 1.39 (1.28-1.52) greater odds of engaging in leisure time physical activity for more than 150 min/week or up to 150 min/week (vs. none), respectively. Perceiving a more walkable neighbourhood was also positively associated with transport-related physical activity. The same pattern was observed for diet: compared with participants who perceived healthy foods as less available in their neighbourhood, those who saw them as more available had odds 1.48 greater (1.31-1.66) of eating fruits, and 1.47 greater (1.30-1.66) of eating vegetables, more than once per day.
  
  
  
  Perceived walkability and neighbourhood availability of healthy food were independently associated with the practice of physical activity and diet quality, respectively, underlining the importance of neighbourhood-level public policies to changing and maintaining health-related habits.
authors: Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. dorachor@fiocruz.br.
authors: Dóra
authors: D
authors: Chor
authors: Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors: Letícia Oliveira
authors: LO
authors: Cardoso
authors: Programa de Computação Científica, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors: Aline Araújo
authors: AA
authors: Nobre
authors: Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, 21040-360, RJ, Brazil.
authors: Rosane Härter
authors: RH
authors: Griep
authors: Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors: Maria de Jesus Mendes
authors: MJM
authors: Fonseca
authors: Escola de Nutrição, Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, Ouro Preto, MG, Brazil.
authors: Luana
authors: L
authors: Giatti
authors: Hospital Universitário, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors: Isabela
authors: I
authors: Bensenor
authors: Departamento de Nutrição, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
authors: Maria
authors: M
authors: Del Carmen Bisi Molina
authors: Instituto de Saúde Coletiva, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
authors: Estela M L
authors: EML
authors: Aquino
authors: School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors: Ana
authors: A
authors: Diez-Roux
authors: Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors: Débora
authors: D
authors: de Pina Castiglione
authors: Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors: Simone M
authors: SM
authors: Santos
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004032:Diet / Q000523:psychology*; D004034:Diet Surveys; D015444:Exercise / Q000523:psychology*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007899:Leisure Activities; D016015:Logistic Models; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010465:Perception; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014186:Transportation; D016138:Walking / Q000523:psychology
keywords: Diet; Food environment; Neighbourhood; Physical activity; Public health