ides.861.week6.thompson

How has the design of suburbia become the onset of obesity? What implementations in design can change this lifestyle?

Obesity is an epidemic here in the United States that is on the increase as “suburban sprawl has created a nation that has been supersized beyond walking distance” (Lacayo 1). Over the past thirty years the mom-and-pop stores and amenities within a neighborhood have become virtually extinct. Families have become so used to having to drive to have their basic needs met that they are no longer willing to walk more than quarter of a mile from their home for anything, even exercise. Cookie cutter neighborhoods offer no trails, no common ground or playgrounds for children, a severe lack in promoting a healthy living style for families in these areas.

Research has shown that now a connection can be made between sprawling suburbs and spreading waistlines (Lacayo 2). Currently there are three great examples of how designers are trying to combat this “spread.”

First, New York has a great model for the rest of the country to look into. Back in 2010, the Active Design Guidelines were produced. Active Design is a concept in design that “addresses obesity and encourages physical activity through the design of the environment” (Robbins 2) on a daily basis. Ways this design promotes this lifestyle change are: walking instead of driving, taking stairs instead of elevators, and creating parks. All of these offer a form of exercise and can lower health risks for men and women. New York City has begun to promote these guidelines. One example is the Via Verde, a mixed-income housing complex in the South Bronx. The architects design houses, rooftop gardens; recreational spaces for children, onsite fitness, and day lit interior stairs that have jazz music playing.

Another example are the healthy eating campaigns and physical activity programs that Los Angeles County is currently implementing. They developed a design manual that curates the best practices that designers and officials can use to make “streets more active, usable, and healthy for residents” (Berg 1). This manual has been created in such a way that it has been made available to any city or government body with the hope that they will “take it, adopt it, and plagiarize it, do whatever” (Berg 1).

Finally, Time Magazine’s article stated that a change in the zoning regulations would allot for the mixed-use areas to return (residential and commercial in the same neighborhood). Reworking roadways in areas to allow for students to walk to their schools versus being driven or driving themselves is just another possible solution to change the unfortunate lifestyle that has taken over America.

There is a reoccurring theme between all of the articles read and that is “until we change how America is built, how Americans are built will be a continuing problem” (Lacayo 4).


Here is a graphic to represent the other article that we read for class: