RLHPF Confrence Booklet 2020 Final - Flipbook - Page 1
David Flores | California State University, Los Angeles
By increasing opportunities for
physical activity, the prevalence of
metabolic syndrome such as heart
disease, obesity, and type-2
diabetes can be prevented and
managed with a walking regimen
at a moderate intensity. Walking
With Purpose aims to improve the
health and the economy of Los
Angeles by increasing the
opportunities to walk, especially
for demographics living in low
socioeconomic status areas.
Los Angeles Walks is a non-profit
organization based in the heart of
Downtown, Los Angeles. In order to
increase opportunities for physical
activity, the ‘Walking With Purpose’
module was created. The purpose
of this training is to increase
walking behaviors for community
members by implementing the
Golden Circle approach of ‘why,
how, and what’. This was tailored
towards built environments that do
not offer accessible sidewalks.
The culture of Los Angeles is a vehicle
dependent one, so individuals have become
less physically active. Active transportation is
not the main method of transit because the
built environment of Los Angeles favors
vehicle transportation. Los Angeles Walks
wishes to change that norm by advocating for
a more accessible and safer infrastructure by
shifting the current vehicle transit into a more
walkable built environment.
In 2015, a health survey done by
the Department of Public Health
revealed that 1-in-10 people
residing in Los Angeles had
diabetes and 1-in-4 people were
obese. From the year 1997 - 2015,
the prevalence of diabetes and
obesity has nearly doubled in Los
Angeles County. Type-2 diabetes
is a component of metabolic
syndrome and is a major public
health issue that affects millions
of people.
20 | Randall Lewis Health Policy Fellowship
Walking is the most common form of
‘moderate’ physical activity and can be
done with little-to-no cost. Walking at a
moderate intensity may help reduce
and manage the risk of metabolic
syndrome. To gain the health benefits
from walking, the rate of perceived
exertion (RPE) is a tool used to measure
an individual’s relative intensity for
physical activity, walking in this case.
Ideally, walking at a moderate intensity
should be between the ranges of 2-4 on
the RPE scale.
The rising cost of healthcare can be
regressed with a healthy regimen of
walking because it is an accessible
form of physical activity that can be
done for little-to-no cost. By
reimagining the built environment
of Los Angeles, walking can become
an intervention that can passively
improve the quality of life of its
residents and reduce the risk of
metabolic syndrome one step at a
time.
Randall Lewis Health Policy Fellowship | 21