Sprawl Linked to Chronic Health Problems

People who live in sprawling cities are far less healthy than their counterparts in more compact areas, according to a study performed by the nonprofit Rand ^® Corporation, based on information from Healthcare for Communities, a survey funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The survey analyzed health data for more than 8,600 adults living in 38 metropolitan areas across the U.S. and found that rates of arthritis, asthma, headaches, high blood pressure, and other chronic health problems worsened with increased sprawl. Although sprawling development has previously been linked to individual health problems, such as obesity and high blood pressure (see EBN Vol. 13, No. 2 and Vol. 11, No. 4), “this is the first study that analyzes suburban sprawl and a broad range of chronic health conditions,” according to Roland Sturm, a Rand Health economist and co-author of the study.
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