Environmental factors inhibiting the practice of physical activity. Perception of the environment

Abstract

Abstract: Research on obesity, sedentary lifestyles, overweight and the emergence of chronic and cardiovascular diseases has focused primarily on biological and behavioral factors. More recently, authors are agreeing that the social and physical environment may also play a role. Some aspects of the environment may promote or discourage physical activity. In this review, an overview is given of what is currently known about the relationship between the physical environment and physical activity in the population and how unequal opportunities for physical exercise in the area surrounding the family home becomes a factor influencing physical activity and health. It also details the relationship between environmental factors and physical activity that may vary according to the area of activity, having an unequal impact in different spaces. A space can be healthy or beneficial for society when walking to move from one place to another, but detrimental when performing physical activity in the streets. For organizations such as WHO, the perception of the population related to their environment and lifestyles is an element that contributes not only to generate actions that improve the quality of life but also to promote healthy environments that allow the incorporation of girls, women, the elderly, disadvantaged groups and people with disabilities or chronic diseases, to safe, affordable, and appropriate programs and places.

Keywords: Environmental factors, physical activity, Sedentary lifestyle, Obesity.