Elsevier

Preventive Medicine

Volume 57, Issue 2, August 2013, Pages 135-139
Preventive Medicine

Brief Original Report
Associations between active commuting and physical and mental wellbeing

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2013.04.008Get rights and content
Under a Creative Commons license
open access

Highlights

  • We assessed the relationship between active commuting and physical and mental wellbeing.

  • Greater active commuting was associated with higher levels of physical wellbeing.

  • The strongest association occurred with at least 45 min of active commuting per day.

  • There was no significant association between active commuting and mental wellbeing.

Abstract

Objective

To examine whether a relationship exists between active commuting and physical and mental wellbeing.

Method

In 2009, cross-sectional postal questionnaire data were collected from a sample of working adults (aged 16 and over) in the Commuting and Health in Cambridge study. Travel behaviour and physical activity were ascertained using the Recent Physical Activity Questionnaire (RPAQ) and a seven-day travel-to-work recall instrument from which weekly time spent in active commuting (walking and cycling) was derived. Physical and mental wellbeing were assessed using the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form survey (SF-8). Associations were tested using multivariable linear regression.

Results

An association was observed between physical wellbeing (PCS-8) score and time spent in active commuting after adjustment for other physical activity (adjusted regression coefficients 0.48, 0.79 and 1.21 for 30–149 min/week, 150–224 min/week and ≥ 225 min/week respectively versus < 30 min/week, p = 0.01 for trend; n = 989). No such relationship was found for mental wellbeing (MCS-8) (p = 0.52).

Conclusion

Greater time spent actively commuting is associated with higher levels of physical wellbeing. Longitudinal studies should examine the contribution of changing levels of active commuting and other forms of physical activity to overall health and wellbeing.

Keywords

Active commuting
Physical activity
Wellbeing

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