Vizinhança e saúde: caminhabilidade em duas regiões urbanas em Juiz de Fora - MG

Abstract

Urbanization did not only produce beneficial effects. The WHO estimates that nearly a quarter of the world's deaths in 2012 are attributed to the environment, and most of these are attributed to Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases (CNCD). Authors point to physical inactivity as the main risk factor for CNCD. Aspects of the built environment such as the road system, land use and aesthetic characteristics of the urban space can directly or indirectly influence health of individuals. Thus, urban planners face a major challenge in the organization of urban space. The objective of this study is to investigate urban areas of the city of Juiz de Fora, in relation to physical aspects related to the practice of physical activities (PA). Specific objectives are: to describe and compare two urban regions; and to compare users' perception of walkability with objective data on the environment. The method for selecting the Urban Regions (RUs) of the municipality to be studied considered health indicators, health access, urban environment variability and the Social Development Index, with Esplanada and Vila Furtado de Menezes being selected. In a random sample stratified by census tracts (N = 120), self-reported data were collected regarding life habits, diagnoses of chronic diseases and perception of access to health services. For the analysis of walkability, perception data (NEWS questionnaire) and objective data (S-VAT tool) were collected. As the main result regarding health conditions, it should be noted that the URs present prevalence of overweight and high obesity (68.66% in the Esplanada and 71.70% in Furtado). Although no statistical correlation was identified between the health outcomes and the walkability, it can be observed that the two neighborhoods have a median to low score for objective and subjective walkability, as well as poor PA practice habits. When comparing perception data and objective data on walkability, the study found that the agreement between the data was close to the average (50% agreement and 50% discordance). The evidence presented in this study points out that the absence of characteristics that configure the aesthetics of space, as well as suitable places to walk and cicle, for example, may be influencing neighborhood residents to walk less.