Abstract
Background: The U.S. Surgeon General advocates the accumulation of moderate-intensity activity throughout the day to improve health. Objective: To test the effectiveness of signs to encourage use of stairs instead of escalators. Design: Community intervention. Setting: Shopping center. Participants: 17 901 shoppers. Intervention: Signs promoting the health and weight-control benefits of stair use were placed beside escalators with adjacent stairs. Measurements: The sex, age, race, weight classification, and use of stairs were observed. Results: Overall, stair use increased from 4.8% to 6.9% and 7.2% with the health and weight-control signs, respectively. Younger persons increased their stair use from 4.6% to 6.0% with the health sign and 6.1% with the weight-control sign. Older persons almost doubled their stair use from 5.1% to 8.1% with the health sign and increased use to 8.7% with the weight-control sign. Differential use of stairs was observed between ethnic groups. Among white persons, stair use increased from 5.1% to 7.5% and 7.8% with the health and weight-control signs, respectively. Among black persons, stair use decreased from 4.1% to 3.4% with the health sign and increased to 5.0% with the weight-control sign. At baseline, lean persons used the stairs more often than overweight persons (5.4% and 3.8%, respectively). The health sign increased stair use to 7.2% among normal- weight persons and 6.3% among overweight persons; the weight-control sign prompted stair use to increase to 6.9% among persons of normal weight and to 7.8% among overweight persons. Conclusions: Simple, inexpensive interventions can increase physical activity. Research is needed to identify effective motivators to promote activity among black persons.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 363-369 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Annals of Internal Medicine |
| Volume | 129 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| State | Published - Sep 1 1998 |
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Can inexpensive signs encourage the use of stairs? Results from a community intervention. / Andersen, Ross E.; Franckowiak, Shawn C.; Snyder, Julia; Bartlett, Susan J.; Fontaine, Kevin R.
In: Annals of Internal Medicine, Vol. 129, No. 5, 01.09.1998, p. 363-369.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Can inexpensive signs encourage the use of stairs? Results from a community intervention
AU - Andersen, Ross E.
AU - Franckowiak, Shawn C.
AU - Snyder, Julia
AU - Bartlett, Susan J.
AU - Fontaine, Kevin R.
PY - 1998/9/1
Y1 - 1998/9/1
N2 - Background: The U.S. Surgeon General advocates the accumulation of moderate-intensity activity throughout the day to improve health. Objective: To test the effectiveness of signs to encourage use of stairs instead of escalators. Design: Community intervention. Setting: Shopping center. Participants: 17 901 shoppers. Intervention: Signs promoting the health and weight-control benefits of stair use were placed beside escalators with adjacent stairs. Measurements: The sex, age, race, weight classification, and use of stairs were observed. Results: Overall, stair use increased from 4.8% to 6.9% and 7.2% with the health and weight-control signs, respectively. Younger persons increased their stair use from 4.6% to 6.0% with the health sign and 6.1% with the weight-control sign. Older persons almost doubled their stair use from 5.1% to 8.1% with the health sign and increased use to 8.7% with the weight-control sign. Differential use of stairs was observed between ethnic groups. Among white persons, stair use increased from 5.1% to 7.5% and 7.8% with the health and weight-control signs, respectively. Among black persons, stair use decreased from 4.1% to 3.4% with the health sign and increased to 5.0% with the weight-control sign. At baseline, lean persons used the stairs more often than overweight persons (5.4% and 3.8%, respectively). The health sign increased stair use to 7.2% among normal- weight persons and 6.3% among overweight persons; the weight-control sign prompted stair use to increase to 6.9% among persons of normal weight and to 7.8% among overweight persons. Conclusions: Simple, inexpensive interventions can increase physical activity. Research is needed to identify effective motivators to promote activity among black persons.
AB - Background: The U.S. Surgeon General advocates the accumulation of moderate-intensity activity throughout the day to improve health. Objective: To test the effectiveness of signs to encourage use of stairs instead of escalators. Design: Community intervention. Setting: Shopping center. Participants: 17 901 shoppers. Intervention: Signs promoting the health and weight-control benefits of stair use were placed beside escalators with adjacent stairs. Measurements: The sex, age, race, weight classification, and use of stairs were observed. Results: Overall, stair use increased from 4.8% to 6.9% and 7.2% with the health and weight-control signs, respectively. Younger persons increased their stair use from 4.6% to 6.0% with the health sign and 6.1% with the weight-control sign. Older persons almost doubled their stair use from 5.1% to 8.1% with the health sign and increased use to 8.7% with the weight-control sign. Differential use of stairs was observed between ethnic groups. Among white persons, stair use increased from 5.1% to 7.5% and 7.8% with the health and weight-control signs, respectively. Among black persons, stair use decreased from 4.1% to 3.4% with the health sign and increased to 5.0% with the weight-control sign. At baseline, lean persons used the stairs more often than overweight persons (5.4% and 3.8%, respectively). The health sign increased stair use to 7.2% among normal- weight persons and 6.3% among overweight persons; the weight-control sign prompted stair use to increase to 6.9% among persons of normal weight and to 7.8% among overweight persons. Conclusions: Simple, inexpensive interventions can increase physical activity. Research is needed to identify effective motivators to promote activity among black persons.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0032169073&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0032169073&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Article
C2 - 9735063
AN - SCOPUS:0032169073
VL - 129
SP - 363
EP - 369
JO - Annals of Internal Medicine
JF - Annals of Internal Medicine
SN - 0003-4819
IS - 5
ER -