Physical activity-friendly neighbourhood among older adults from a medium size urban setting in Southern Europe Ana Isabel Ribeiro a,b,c, ⁎, Richard Mitchell d,1 , Marília Sá Carvalho e,2 , Maria de Fátima de Pina a,b,c,3 a Departamento de Epidemiologia Clínica, Medicina Preditiva e Saúde Pública, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade do Porto b ISPUP — Instituto de Saúde Pública da Universidade do Porto c INEB — Instituto de Engenharia Biomédica, Universidade do Porto d Centre for Population Health Sciences, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow e PROCC — Programa de Computação Científica, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil abstract article info Available online 9 September 2013 Keywords: Physical activity Urban environment Neighborhood Portugal Older adults Objective. In this cross-sectional study, we examined the relationship between socio-environmental charac- teristics of neighborhood of residence and the frequency of leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) among older adults from Porto (Portugal). Method. Data from EpiPorto – a prospective adult cohort study from Porto (Portugal) – were used. Only adults aged ≥65 at baseline (1999–2003) were included (n = 580). We used a Geographic Information System to objectively measure the neighborhood characteristics and Generalized Additive Models to estimate their effect on participation in LTPA (none vs. some reported) and frequency of LTPA (min/day). Results. 62% of the participants reported no LTPA. Active elderly spent on average 38 (women) and 67 (men) minutes per day exercising. Neighborhood characteristics were unrelated to whether older people exercised or not. However, among active individuals, distance to the nearest destination (β = -0.154, p = 0.016), in women, and distance to the nearest park, in men (-0.030, 0.050), were predictors of LTPA frequency. Conclusion. There was almost no association between neighborhood characteristics and whether older adults engaged in LTPA or not, but among those that did engage, neighborhood characteristics were associated with increased frequency of LTPA. The promotion of well distributed destinations and parks might improve physical activity levels among the elderly. © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Introduction Along with a healthy diet and psychosocial well-being, physical activity (PA) is a major determinant for successful aging (Gremeaux et al., 2012). International guidelines among older adults recommend 150 min of moderate–vigorous PA per week (WHO, 2010) but even light intensity PA is an important predictor of survival (Dogra and Stathokostas, 2012). Still, the majority of older people report sedentary lifestyles. Several motivators and barriers may influence an older person's PA (Schutzer and Graves, 2004). While there has been a recent plethora of studies on the associations between PA and neighborhood characteristics, these focused predominantly on children, adolescents and working-age adults. But changes in functional and cognitive capacity, reductions in income and increasingly limited spaces for activity make seniors more vulnerable to the effects of local environment on health and related behaviors (Kawachi and Berkman, 2003). Many environmental correlates of PA have been mooted. However, systematic reviews have found inconsistent results. The association between neighborhood attributes and PA is by no means proven (Cunningham and Michael, 2004; Koeneman et al., 2011; McCormack and Shiell, 2011). It is also likely that associations will vary by gender, and that gender differences may interact with age. Firstly, the older individuals are, the lower their mobility. Secondly, the use of space is highly dependent on social constructs. For instance, women appear to be more vulnerable to the neighborhood effects (Stafford et al., 2005). In addition, social environment seems particularly important in women, Preventive Medicine 57 (2013) 664–670 ⁎ Corresponding author at: GeoEpidemiology Group, Instituto de Engenharia Biomédica — INEB, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 823, 4150-180 Porto. Tel.:+351 226074900; fax: + 351 226094567. E-mail addresses: ana.isabel.ribeiro@ineb.up.pt (A.I. Ribeiro), Richard.Mitchell@glasgow.ac.uk (R. Mitchell), carvalho@fiocruz.br (M.S. Carvalho), fpina@med.up.pt (M.F. de Pina). 1 Centre for Research on Environment, Society and Health, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, 1 Lilybank Gardens, Glasgow G12 8RZ. Tel.: +44 1413 301663. 2 Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Programa de Computação Científica, Vice Presidência de Ensino Informação e Comunicação, Av Brasil, 4365 - Antiga Residência Oficial, Manguinhos, 21045- 900 - Rio de Janeiro, RJ - Brasil. Tel: +55 21 38361116; fax: +55 21 22705141. 3 GeoEpidemiology Group, Departamento de Epidemiologia Clínica, Medicina Preditiva e Saúde Pública, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade do Porto, Portugal, Alameda Prof. Hernâni Monteiro, 4200-319 Porto. Tel.: +351 225513652; fax: +351 225513653. 0091-7435/$ – see front matter © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2013.08.033 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Preventive Medicine journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ypmed