Does Living in the Burbs Make You Sick?
Moss Greene
March 24, 2007
What could possibly be healthier about living in hectic New York City compared to the peaceful suburbs of Atlanta? When I moved, I was in for a big surprise.
What a shock! When my husband and I moved from hectic New York City to the beautiful, clean, peaceful suburbs of Atlanta, we were in for a big surprise.
What could possibly be healthier about living in the city compared to the burbs?
The answer is simple. All you have to do is open your garage door in any American suburb to find the culprit. That’s right – your car is suburban public health enemy number one.
According to research published in Public Health, living in a big city like New York, Boston or San Francisco is better for your health than living in a car dependent suburb. Why?
Exercise!
After studying 8,600 people in 38 metropolitan areas across the U.S., the researchers concluded that living in the suburbs leads to more chronic health problems – including high blood pressure, arthritis, diabetes and migraines.
The suburbanites were also more prematurely aged than the city dwellers.
After my husband and I moved from the city, we noticed two things about the suburbs.
In the city we walked everywhere. If we decided to drive, we even had to walk three blocks to and from our parking garage. Plus, we went up and down stairs to get to the subway and up and down stairs to and from our apartment. And, we did this every day, day after day.
So, what happened when we left?
We started gaining weight. If we hadn’t nipped that in the bud by consciously programming regular daily exercise into our very busy schedule, according to research, it would have probably led to a host of other health problems.
At least thirty minutes a day of exercise, such as walking, is essential to optimum health.
Studies show it can help you manage your weight, lower blood pressure and cholesterol and prevent heart disease, diabetes and some cancers, such as breast cancer.
Research also shows that getting and staying in shape with exercise can lift your spirits, fight off depression and help you to look and feel as much as 10 to 20 years younger.
So, as 90-year-old fitness guru Jack LaLanne so delicately put it, NOW is the perfect time to “Get off your seat and back on your feet!”
Copyright © Moss Greene. All rights reserved.
Moss is a widely published health journalist and Nutrition Editor at BellaOnline. For more fun and insightful articles on wellness, subscribe to her free weekly
What a shock! When my husband and I moved from hectic New York City to the beautiful, clean, peaceful suburbs of Atlanta, we were in for a big surprise.
What could possibly be healthier about living in the city compared to the burbs?
The answer is simple. All you have to do is open your garage door in any American suburb to find the culprit. That’s right – your car is suburban public health enemy number one.
According to research published in Public Health, living in a big city like New York, Boston or San Francisco is better for your health than living in a car dependent suburb. Why?
Exercise!
After studying 8,600 people in 38 metropolitan areas across the U.S., the researchers concluded that living in the suburbs leads to more chronic health problems – including high blood pressure, arthritis, diabetes and migraines.
The suburbanites were also more prematurely aged than the city dwellers.
After my husband and I moved from the city, we noticed two things about the suburbs.
- There were more overweight people and
- We had to work much harder at getting exercise.
In the city we walked everywhere. If we decided to drive, we even had to walk three blocks to and from our parking garage. Plus, we went up and down stairs to get to the subway and up and down stairs to and from our apartment. And, we did this every day, day after day.
So, what happened when we left?
We started gaining weight. If we hadn’t nipped that in the bud by consciously programming regular daily exercise into our very busy schedule, according to research, it would have probably led to a host of other health problems.
At least thirty minutes a day of exercise, such as walking, is essential to optimum health.
Studies show it can help you manage your weight, lower blood pressure and cholesterol and prevent heart disease, diabetes and some cancers, such as breast cancer.
Research also shows that getting and staying in shape with exercise can lift your spirits, fight off depression and help you to look and feel as much as 10 to 20 years younger.
So, as 90-year-old fitness guru Jack LaLanne so delicately put it, NOW is the perfect time to “Get off your seat and back on your feet!”
Copyright © Moss Greene. All rights reserved.
Moss is a widely published health journalist and Nutrition Editor at BellaOnline. For more fun and insightful articles on wellness, subscribe to her free weekly
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