The surveys are in! The role of local government in supporting active community design.

Background: Recent studies detailing how the built environment affects health have found that land use and community design may have an impact on reducing sedentary lifestyles and increasing physical activity.

Method: However, there is little information available about the attitudes of local officials and professional staff who often are directly responsible for making decisions about land use and community design.

Results: This opportunistic study reports findings across five major surveys that investigated healthy community design knowledge, attitudes, and practice among local officials and professional staff.

Impact of Promoting Lifestyle Activity for Youth (PLAY) on children's physical activity.

This study examined effects of a school-based intervention called PLAY (Promoting Lifestyle Activity for Youth) on physical activity levels and body mass index (BMI) of students. Participants included 606 fourth-grade students selected from a stratified sample of 35 schools in Arizona and placed into four groups: PLAY & PE, PLAY Only, PE Only, and No Treatment. A treatment-control, post-measurement design assessed physical activity using the YAMAX pedometer, and height and weight data were collected following the intervention.