Racial Residential Segregation, Fitness Facilities, Physical Activity, and BMI: The Case of Houston, Texas

• In Event: 2184 - Section on Medical Sociology Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 19. Contextual Factors and Health

Abstract

Research over the past several decades has demonstrated a number of poor health and health care consequences associated with racial/ethnic residential segregation for minority residents of such areas. Yet, few studies have empirically tested the mechanisms which could produce and sustain this association. Here, I test one possible mechanism: the distribution of health-related facilities across urban space. Specifically, I examine the distribution of physical fitness facilities, and how this relates to exercise rates and BMI. I test this association in the case of Houston, Texas using the 2010 Health of Houston Survey combined with contextual data from several Census products. First, I find that Black and Latino residential segregation is related to a lower density of physical fitness facilities across Houston-area neighborhoods, though this association is attenuated with the inclusion of the percent college educated. Next, I test the mediation pathway and find that the density of fitness facilities is related to lower rates of physical activity, and that higher rates of physical activity are related to a lower BMI on average. Finally, I find a direct negative relationship between the density of fitness facilities and BMI, and that this effect is at least partially mediated by physical activity. In sum, this study demonstrates that local provision of key neighborhood resources, such as physical fitness facilities, has consequences for both health-related behaviors and health outcomes. As segregated communities are less likely to have these facilities, this presents an important potential pathway by which we can understand racial disparities in health.

Author

• Kathryn Freeman Anderson, University of Houston