This study examined the relationship between the neighborhood food environment and the food purchasing behaviors among adolescents. Grade 7 and 8 students (n = 810) at 21 elementary schools in London, Ontario, Canada completed a questionnaire assessing their food purchasing behaviors. Parents of participants also completed a brief questionnaire providing residential address and demographic information. A Geographic Information System (GIS) was used to assess students’ home and school neighborhood food environment and land use characteristics. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the influence of the home neighborhood food environment on students’ food purchasing behaviors, while two-level Hierarchical Non-Linear Regression Models were used to examine the effects of school neighborhood food environment factors on students’ food purchasing behaviors. The study showed that approximately 65% of participants reported self-purchasing foods from fast-food outlets or convenience stores. Close proximity (i.e., less than 1 km) to the nearest fast-food outlet or convenience store in the home neighborhood increased the likelihood of food purchasing from these food establishments at least once per week by adolescents (p < 0.05). High fast-food outlet density in both home and school neighborhoods was associated with increased fast-food purchasing by adolescents (i.e., at least once per week; p < 0.05). In conclusion, macro-level regulations and policies are required to amend the health-detracting neighborhood food environment surrounding children and youth’s home and school.

Background: Cancer is the leading cause of death in Canada and a major cause of death worldwide. Environmental exposure to carcinogens and environments that may relate to health behaviors are important to examine as they can be modified to lower cancer risks. Built environments include aspects such as transit infrastructure, greenspace, food and tobacco environments, or land use, which may impact how people move, exercise, eat, and live. While environments may play a role in overall cancer risk, exposure to carcinogens or healthier environments is not equitably spread across space. Exposures to carcinogens commonly concentrate among socially and/or economically disadvantaged populations. While many studies have examined inequalities in exposure or cancer risk, this has commonly been for one exposure. Methods: This scoping review collected and synthesized research that examines inequities in carcinogenic environments and exposures. Results: This scoping review found that neighborhoods with higher proportions of low-income residents, racialized people, or same-sex couples had higher exposures to carcinogens and environments that may influence cancer risk. There are currently four main themes in research studying inequitable exposures: air pollution and hazardous substances, tobacco access, food access, and other aspects of the built environment, with most research still focusing on air pollution. Conclusions: More work is needed to understand how exposures to these four areas intersect with other factors to reduce inequities in exposures to support longer-term goals toward cancer prevention.

Evidence related to the effectiveness of speed humps on reducing pedestrian-motor vehicle collisions (PMVC) has been conflicting. The purpose of this study was to determine the association between speed hump installation and changes in PMVC rates in Toronto, Canada. Speed humps were mapped along with police-reported pedestrian collisions from 2000–2011 and built environment roadway characteristics. A quasi-experimental study identified collision counts before and after speed hump installation, modeled using repeated measures Poisson regression adjusted for season and roadway characteristics. Stratified analyses were conducted by age group and injury severity. There were 27,827 PMVC, with 1344 collisions along 409 roadways with speed humps. PMVC incidence rates/meters of road/month decreased after installation of speed humps (IRR 0.78 95 % CI 0.66, 0.91). Winter, collector roads (versus local), pre-amalgamated city centre and increased land use mix were associated with more collisions. The association between speed humps and PMVC rates decreased more for children (IRR 0.57, 95 % CI 0.41, 0.79) than for adults (IRR 0.80, 95 % CI 0.68, 0.95). Speed humps are an easily replicated method of traffic calming which have a significant protective effect on PMVC on the roadways where they are installed, particularly for children. There is a need for an area-wide analysis to determine the effects of the installation of speed humps to ensure that PMVC are not being displaced to surrounding roadways.