Harvesting More Than Vegetables: the Potential Weight Control Benefits of Community Gardening

Overview

Journal Am J Public Health

Specialty Public Health

Date 2013 Apr 20

PMID 23597347

Citations 45

Authors

Cathleen D Zick

Ken R Smith

Lori Kowaleski-Jones

Claire Uno

Brittany J Merrill

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Objectives: We examined the association of participation in community gardening with healthy body weight.

Methods: We examined body mass index (BMI) data from 198 community gardening participants in Salt Lake City, Utah, in relationship to BMI data for 3 comparison groups: neighbors, siblings, and spouses. In comparisons, we adjusted for gender, age, and the year of the BMI measurement.

Results: Both women and men community gardeners had significantly lower BMIs than did their neighbors who were not in the community gardening program. The estimated BMI reductions in the multivariate analyses were -1.84 for women and -2.36 for men. We also observed significantly lower BMIs for women community gardeners compared with their sisters (-1.88) and men community gardeners compared with their brothers (-1.33). Community gardeners also had lower odds of being overweight or obese than did their otherwise similar neighbors.

Conclusions: The health benefits of community gardening may go beyond enhancing the gardeners' intake of fruits and vegetables. Community gardens may be a valuable element of land use diversity that merits consideration by public health officials who want to identify neighborhood features that promote health.

Citing Articles

Interactions with Nature, Good for the Mind and Body: A Narrative Review.

Stott D, Forde D, Sharma C, Deutsch J, Bruneau Jr M, Nasser J Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2024; 21(3).

PMID: 38541328 PMC: 10970260. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph21030329.

Quantifying the relationship between gardening and health and well-being in the UK: a survey during the covid-19 pandemic.

Gulyas B, Caton S, Edmondson J BMC Public Health. 2024; 24(1):810.

PMID: 38486178 PMC: 10941614. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-18249-8.

Growing Healthy Hearts: a single-arm feasibility study of a digitally delivered gardening, cooking, and nutrition intervention for adults with risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

Veldheer S, Whitehead-Zimmers M, Bordner C, Weinstein O, Choi H, Spreenberg-Bronsoms K Pilot Feasibility Stud. 2023; 9(1):152.

PMID: 37653532 PMC: 10470136. DOI: 10.1186/s40814-023-01380-5.

Inspired to Garden: A Qualitative Study of Participants' Experiences in an Academic Medical Center Garden.

Moore H, Boisvert K, Bryan M, Hoare L, Gates M, Garnett B Cureus. 2023; 15(7):e41695.

PMID: 37575742 PMC: 10413914. DOI: 10.7759/cureus.41695.

Urban park system on public health: underlying driving mechanism and planning thinking.

Zhang C, Su Q, Zhu Y Front Public Health. 2023; 11:1193604.

PMID: 37377543 PMC: 10292818. DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1193604.

References

Lopez-Zetina J, Lee H, Friis R . The link between obesity and the built environment. Evidence from an ecological analysis of obesity and vehicle miles of travel in California. Health Place. 2005; 12(4):656-64. DOI: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2005.09.001. View

Zick C, Smith K, Fan J, Brown B, Yamada I, Kowaleski-Jones L . Running to the store? The relationship between neighborhood environments and the risk of obesity. Soc Sci Med. 2009; 69(10):1493-500. PMC: 2791711. DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.08.032. View

Troiano R, Berrigan D, Dodd K, Masse L, Tilert T, McDowell M . Physical activity in the United States measured by accelerometer. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2007; 40(1):181-8. DOI: 10.1249/mss.0b013e31815a51b3. View

Smith K, Brown B, Yamada I, Kowaleski-Jones L, Zick C, Fan J . Walkability and body mass index density, design, and new diversity measures. Am J Prev Med. 2008; 35(3):237-44. DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2008.05.028. View

Alaimo K, Packnett E, Miles R, Kruger D . Fruit and vegetable intake among urban community gardeners. J Nutr Educ Behav. 2008; 40(2):94-101. DOI: 10.1016/j.jneb.2006.12.003. View

Giles-Corti B, Macintyre S, Clarkson J, Pikora T, Donovan R . Environmental and lifestyle factors associated with overweight and obesity in Perth, Australia. Am J Health Promot. 2003; 18(1):93-102. DOI: 10.4278/0890-1171-18.1.93. View

Nawaz H, Chan W, Abdulrahman M, Larson D, Katz D . Self-reported weight and height: implications for obesity research. Am J Prev Med. 2001; 20(4):294-8. DOI: 10.1016/s0749-3797(01)00293-8. View

van den Berg A, van Winsum-Westra M, de Vries S, van Dillen S . Allotment gardening and health: a comparative survey among allotment gardeners and their neighbors without an allotment. Environ Health. 2010; 9:74. PMC: 3001426. DOI: 10.1186/1476-069X-9-74. View

Stafford M, Cummins S, Ellaway A, Sacker A, Wiggins R, Macintyre S . Pathways to obesity: identifying local, modifiable determinants of physical activity and diet. Soc Sci Med. 2007; 65(9):1882-97. DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2007.05.042. View

10.

Rundle A, Diez Roux A, Free L, Miller D, Neckerman K, Weiss C . The urban built environment and obesity in New York City: a multilevel analysis. Am J Health Promot. 2007; 21(4 Suppl):326-34. DOI: 10.4278/0890-1171-21.4s.326. View

11.

Lopez R . Urban sprawl and risk for being overweight or obese. Am J Public Health. 2004; 94(9):1574-9. PMC: 1448496. DOI: 10.2105/ajph.94.9.1574. View

12.

Johnson D, Smith L . Testing the recommendations of the Washington State Nutrition and Physical Activity Plan: the Moses Lake case study. Prev Chronic Dis. 2006; 3(2):A59. PMC: 1563950. View

13.

Litt J, Soobader M, Turbin M, Hale J, Buchenau M, Marshall J . The influence of social involvement, neighborhood aesthetics, and community garden participation on fruit and vegetable consumption. Am J Public Health. 2011; 101(8):1466-73. PMC: 3134498. DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2010.300111. View

14.

Pendola R, Gen S . BMI, auto use, and the urban environment in San Francisco. Health Place. 2006; 13(2):551-6. DOI: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2006.02.004. View

15.

Connor Gorber S, Tremblay M, Moher D, Gorber B . A comparison of direct vs. self-report measures for assessing height, weight and body mass index: a systematic review. Obes Rev. 2007; 8(4):307-26. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-789X.2007.00347.x. View

16.

Armstrong D . A survey of community gardens in upstate New York: implications for health promotion and community development. Health Place. 2000; 6(4):319-27. DOI: 10.1016/s1353-8292(00)00013-7. View

17.

Ross N, Tremblay S, Khan S, Crouse D, Tremblay M, Berthelot J . Body mass index in urban Canada: neighborhood and metropolitan area effects. Am J Public Health. 2007; 97(3):500-8. PMC: 1805015. DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2004.060954. View

18.

McCormack L, Laska M, Larson N, Story M . Review of the nutritional implications of farmers' markets and community gardens: a call for evaluation and research efforts. J Am Diet Assoc. 2010; 110(3):399-408. DOI: 10.1016/j.jada.2009.11.023. View

19.

Wakefield S, Yeudall F, Taron C, Reynolds J, Skinner A . Growing urban health: community gardening in South-East Toronto. Health Promot Int. 2007; 22(2):92-101. DOI: 10.1093/heapro/dam001. View

20.

Frank L, Andresen M, Schmid T . Obesity relationships with community design, physical activity, and time spent in cars. Am J Prev Med. 2004; 27(2):87-96. DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2004.04.011. View