Removing exercise barriers for low-income women
Voters bombarded this past election year by maps of red and blue states probably are unaware of Barbara Speck’s own multicolored version of a U.S. map.
The maps she projects onto a screen during presentations come from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The mostly blue map, representing states with obesity rates of less than 20 percent, suddenly changes colors as it races through the years. From 1985 to 2002, the map becomes predominantly gold (states with obesity rates of 20 to 25 percent). In its final form the map is peppered with red states—those in which 25 percent or more of the population are obese.
“And that pattern is continuing,” Speck says.
Lack of physical activity is a major culprit behind the obesity trend, she explains.
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Barbara Speck (right) meets participants in a study aimed at increasing walking and other activity in low-income women.
“We used to be [physically active]—and we’re a lot less.”
Citing a study conducted in 2000, she says that 10,000 steps are recommended daily, but the low-income women she has studied report walking only about 5,600 steps a day.
“So people are walking half as much as they should,” she surmises.
Speck, an associate professor in U of L’s School of Nursing, has been looking at the exercise habits of women for some time. She has researched how to help women be active within their busy schedules, including providing them with pedometers to encourage them to move.
In her latest study, Speck has National Institutes of Health funding to examine the exercise barriers for low-income women.
“Statistics are very clear,” Speck says. “The populations in the United States that are least active are women and low-income people. Combine that with the fact that in Kentucky we have one of the highest levels of inactivity in the country, and you can clearly see that this population is at risk.”
Speck’s work is an intervention pilot study. Participants, recruited from Louisville’s Smoketown neighborhood, were divided into two groups. The first served as the comparison group. Speck and her colleagues pre-tested the participants for blood sugar, height, weight and blood pressure, then re-tested them at the end of six months without any exercise intervention.
The second group—the intervention group—was recruited from the same neighborhood. They also were pre-tested and are currently in the intervention stage of the study. The women in this part of the study are offered eight different physical activities throughout the week.
The goal of Speck’s study is defining and removing potential barriers for these women.
“There’s a concept out there that in order to be active, you have to buy expensive clothes and go to the gym,” Speck says.
To help women overcome this misconception, participants are encouraged to show up for exercise sessions wearing comfortable clothes and shoes. Activities range from walks through the neighborhood to aerobics classes at the Presbyterian Community Center where the group meets.
“We’re trying to get that group of women to do something that they can choose to do that doesn’t cost them anything; something that they can put right into their lifestyle,” Speck says.
Child care is provided so that women are able to free up time for the classes.
Speck hopes that encouraging women to be more physically active also will encourage them to think more about their overall health. Women in the group receive a newsletter with articles about health and exercise, and one of the activities offered each week is a walk in the neighborhood with a nurse practitioner to discuss health issues.
To complete her study Speck will compare the women’s test results over the study’s course, looking for improvements in things such as blood pressure and blood sugar.
“If it were a longer intervention, we would like to see some weight loss for those who need it,” she adds.
What is most important in a short-term study like this one is a change in attitude, Speck explains, and the hope that women will find a way to work activity into their daily lives.
“We know that being physically active prevents many conditions and can improve the quality of life for people whose health tends to be lower than women with higher income,” she says.
“We would like to see them doing things like walking with their kids or being active around the house. Vacuuming, for example, counts towards physical activity and cleans the house, too.
“It’s a small thing but it’s part of the whole overall picture.”