Laura Johnson, MPH, CN, Lead Health Educator, Weight Management:

The research is clear: countries with the highest levels of active transport have the lowest obesity rates. In the US only 12% of the population uses active transport compared to 62% in Sweden, 52% in the Netherlands; where obesity rates are 9.4 and 8.1 respectively. (Basset et al, 2008)  In the US about 1/3 of the country is obese.

Support for these findings comes from the fact that the infrastructure of these countries is compact, a layout conducive to getting around without a car. If you know the Seattle area, think Greenlake, Capitol Hill, Ballard; all are neighborhoods where it is almost easier to get from point A to B without a car since you don’t have to spend time circling to find a parking spot! Not to mention that these urban villages are complete with all your needs: grocery store, post office, dry cleaning, cafes and coffee shops in abundance!  Urban sprawl has made it such that new houses today are built in neighborhoods where you may find an elementary or middle school amongst housing developments, but local business and amenities are built in their own separate ‘strip mall neighborhood’ of sorts.  So instead of walking up the block to pick up the dry cleaning or to purchase a loaf of bread, we get in our cars and drive a mile to the ‘mall’.

This non-walking behavior can be translated to other aspects of day to day living as well.  How many times do you see people taking the elevator instead of the stairs in your workplace, circling the parking lot of the big box stores simply so we don’t have to walk any farther than if we were closer (did we forget we will be walking for an hour while shopping?)  Or how about those who circle the gym to get a closer parking spot- really! I am most aware of how Americans will avoid walking when I am at the airport and see everyone, with a carry on or without, waiting to get on the crammed escalator while there is absolutely no one walking up the 2 available flights of stairs!  To me this sight just screams “Welcome to America where over 2/3 of our population are overweight or obese!”

So what are we as a society to do in order to get people walking?  This is the dilemma.

The movement to get Americans walking is not new.  In 2002 the Surface Transportation Policy Project set out to survey the attitudes of American related to the topic of walking.  The survey found that Americans would like to walk more but are held back by poorly designed communities; ones that encourage speeding cars, and whose design in inconvenient to walk to shops and restaurants.  Right here in my very own neighborhood the Tacoma City Council passed the Mobility Master Plan (MoMAP) to address the better design of pedestrian walkways and bikeways.  Kaiser Permanente has responded by launching Every Body Walk!, a public awareness project aimed at continuing the conversation of the health benefits of walking.

All of this is evidence that people are talking about walking.  But have we done enough?  By the scene I commonly observe at airports, I would say no.  Can we at Alere make a difference?  You can start by attending one of the organized Fitness Walks.  And if you work remotely, as I do, take a walk on your next break.  We can all individually make a difference by getting out there and walking!  Here’s to many more steps!