Walking and Bicycling to School: A Review
- 1 September 2008
- journal article
- review article
- Published by SAGE Publications in American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine
- Vol. 2 (5), 372-396
- https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827608320127
Abstract
Walking and bicycling (active commuting) to school has been proposed as a strategy for increasing youth physical activity and decreasing the prevalence of overweight. Citations for this review were retrieved through PubMed, Transport, ERIC, and ISI database searches using relevant keywords (1975 to March 2007), government and organization Web sites, and bibliographic citations. This review presents (1) prevalence estimates for active commuting to school; (2) the correlates of active commuting to school, presented using a new conceptual framework; (3) the associations between active commuting to school and health (ie, physical activity, weight status, environmental); and (4) a summary of the findings and recommendations for further research. Considerable heterogeneity exists among the reviewed studies for sample size and demographics, the methods used to measure active commuting, and the definition used to identify a positive case (active commuter). In general, active commuting to school is much less prevalent in the United States compared with European countries. A wide range of correlates of active commuting to school have been studied (individual to policy level). Active commuters tend to be more active than nonactive commuters, although no difference in weight status was observed in most studies. More research is needed to corroborate these findings and build on the knowledge base so that effective walk-to-school interventions can be implemented independently or as part of other health promotion efforts, including physician counseling for physical activity.Keywords
This publication has 77 references indexed in Scilit:
- Travel by Walking Before and After School and Physical Activity Among Adolescent GirlsArchives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 2007
- Variation in physical activity lies with the child, not his environment: evidence for an ‘activitystat’ in young children (EarlyBird 16)International Journal of Obesity, 2006
- How Do Perceptions of Local Neighborhood Relate to Adolescents' Walking and Cycling?American Journal of Health Promotion, 2005
- Physical Activity Levels of Children Who Walk, Cycle, or Are Driven to SchoolAmerican Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2005
- The broader impact of walking to school among adolescents: seven day accelerometry based studyBMJ, 2005
- Evidence Based Physical Activity for School-age YouthThe Journal of Pediatrics, 2005
- Commuting to school: Are children who walk more physically active?American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2003
- Active Commuting to SchoolSports Medicine, 2001
- Child road safety in the urban environmentJournal of Transport Geography, 2000
- Restricting Opportunities to Be Active during School Time: Do Children Compensate by Increasing Physical Activity Levels after School?Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 2000