This study explores the impact of violent crime rates on physical inactivity and obesity and reveals a significant correlation, particularly in Black and Hispanic communities, highlighting the disproportionate effect of high crime rates on these health outcomes.
Violent crimes (e.g., armed robbery, aggravated assault, homicide) are public health concerns, as are obesity and inactivity. Statistics suggest that violent crimes disproportionately affect people of color. Violent crime rates have declined in most urban centers in the United States, but their rates have been relatively high in Chicago, IL. The city also has a significant population of people of color.
Higher violent crime rates are often associated with poor built environments, low socioeconomic status, and poor health outcomes. This study, published in the Journal of Urban Health, explored the influence of violent crimes on physical activity levels and obesity and how it affects people of different ethnicities.
Correlation of Violent Crime to Physical Inactivity and Obesity
To understand crime rates in various parts of Chicago, IL, researchers used data from 798 census tracts (the smallest territorial entity for which population data are available) for the year 2020. They also obtained crime data from the Chicago Citizen Law Enforcement and Reporting (CLEAR) database (2018). For physical inactivity and obesity, the study used data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) PLACES project (2017).
They further divided each census tract based on which ethnic groups were in the majority (above 50% population) in that census tract. Thus, 240 (30.1%) had a White majority, 280 (35.1%) had a Black majority, 169 (12.2%) had a Hispanic majority, and 109 (13.7%) were racially diverse.
They used different analytical methods, including bivariate maps, to visualize the spatial distribution of violent crimes, physical inactivity, and obesity. Statistical analysis showed that physical inactivity (less than 150 mins a week) rates were 17.9% in majority White tracts, but 35.9%, 32.6%, and 25.3% in majority Black, majority Hispanic , and diverse tracts, respectively.
The median obesity rates were 23.7% in White tracts but 43.5%, 34.0%, and 28.2% among Black majority, Hispanic majority, and racially diverse tracts, respectively. Interestingly, the study found that violent crime rates were significantly associated with increased physical inactivity and obesity in Black and Hispanic tracts. However, no such relationship was seen in White tracts or racially diverse tracts.
The Bottom Line
Earlier studies have shown that higher violent crime rates are associated with physical inactivity and higher obesity rates. However, none has analyzed its correlation to the racial/ethnic composition of the community. This is among the first studies to show that Blacks and Hispanics are disproportionately affected by high crime rates, thus contributing to significantly higher physical inactivity and obesity in these racial groups. Though the study is based on a robust dataset, the data on crime, population, and physical activity levels were from different years. Nonetheless, researchers think this could not have significantly affected the study quality.
Source:
Singleton, C. R., Winata, F., Parab, K. V., Adeyemi, O. S., & Aguiñaga, S. (2023). Violent Crime, Physical inactivity, and Obesity: Examining Spatial Relationships by Racial/Ethnic composition of community residents. Journal of Urban Health, 100(2), 279–289. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-023-00716-z
