Free to Roam:
Planning for an Active Buffalo
Inactivity and Health
PD450 SUNY at Buffalo
Fall 2009
How Active Living Affects Health & Obesity Studies have proven that the built environment has an influence on the amount of physical activity one may get in their daily routine. The amount of physical activity one incorporates into their routine is directly associated with how healthy or obese they are.
3 out of every 5 Western New
York adults is overweight or obese.
Neighborhoods that are designed for the automobile are not walk able and are proven to foster higher levels of obesity where people live less active lifestyles. In battling the obesity epidemic and its financial impact, local municipalities are taking action to make their communities support alternative, active modes of transportation in an attempt to get lower automobile usage and promote physical activity.
High Blood Pressure
Overweight & Obesity Averages 70.0% 60.0%
Stroke
63.0%
60.2%
58.0%
Cancer
Obesity
50.0% 40.0% 30.0%
26.1%
24.4%
23.0%
High Cholesterol
Osteoarthritis
Diabetes Type 2
20.0% 10.0%
Gout
0.0% Erie County
New York State
Overweight and Obese (BMI > 25 - 29.9)
Obese (BMI > 30 )
Fig 1: On average, three in every five Americans are considered overweight and about one in every four Americans are considered obese.1,2,3
Economics of Obesity Direct Costs5 • Physician visits • Clinic services •.Medications • Hospitalization
Indirect Costs6 • Economic output lost productivity - Obese people miss more days of work than a person of normal weight ($800/Person) - Cost of obesity to a 1,000 person firm; sickdays & healthcare ($285,000) • Premature death
Fig 2: Being obese makes one more vulnerable to a number of other diseases.4
Annual Medical Costs Associated with Obesity Nationally: $147 billion (as of 2009)
• African-American neighborhoods in Western New York are subject to higher rates of obesity because of they lack the infrastracuture to support healthier lifestyles. • The lack in infrasutrcture would include an adequate sidewalk and bicycle lane network. • Without access to alternative, active modes of transportation, African-Americans do not get enough physical activity and have higher levels of overweight and obese individuals. • 66% of African-Americans in WNY are considered to be obese.
Urban Sprawl & Obesity
• According to a national case study by Smart Growth America, sprawl has a small, but significant influence on minutes walked, obesity, and BMI among the residents of a neighborhood.10 • As reported by a 2004 study, an average statewide increase in developed land increased the obesity rate between 10%-12.5%. The increase in the amount of developed land accounted for about 25% of the total rise in obesity in US states between 1991 and 1998.11
Current Policies and Initiatives in Buffalo
7
New York State: $6.1 billion (as of 2003)
8
Fig 3: Aside from the direct medical costs, there are also hidden, indirect costs of obesity.
Obesity & Demographics
• Healthy Communities Iniative • Complete Streets • Safe Routes to School • Buffalo Blue Bicycle (bicycle sharing program) • City of Buffalo Parking ordinance amendment
Heart Disease
National
Congestive Heart Failure
WNY: Obesity & Race 28%
Black
66%
20%
White
52% 36%
American Indian 25%
Hispanic 4%
Asian/Pacific 0
10
41% 41%
21% 20
30
Obese (BMI > 30)
40
50
60
70
Overweight and Obese (BMI > 25 - 29.9)
Fig 4: The chart above shows the rate of obesity among different races in different WNY counties.9
Sprawl & Obesity in Erie and Niagara County County Erie Niagara
Expected BMI
Expected Weight
Expected Obesity
26.11
166.67
18.1
26.08
166.49
23.8
Fig 5: The table above illustrates the study's findings by calculating the expected impact of sprawl on body mass index and weight of an average person (height- 5'7"). The last column calculates the expected impact of sprawl on the probability of being obese.12
One of the best solutions to battle the obesity epidemic is by incorporating concepts of “Active Living” into Buffalo’s neighborhoods. Even though these policies mark the start of an active Buffalo, more research and analysis need to be investigated.
O. Bensal & R. Chetti