Relocating to a deprived neighbourhood with a poor socioeconomic status can increase the risk of developing obesity, according to a recent study carried out by Elsevier Health Sciences and published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, suggesting that addressing sources of deprivation should be a priority for public policy makers.

The study used data from the Dallas Heart Survey (DHS), a probability-based sample of more than 3,000 Dallas County residents aged between 18 and 65 years-old. The survey began between 2000 and 2002 and a seven-year follow-up was conducted between 2007 and 2009 – at which time 1,856 participants completed a detailed questionnaire and lab testing.

The researchers concluded that exposure to higher-deprivation neighbourhoods is a risk factor for weight gain, something which can be addressed through focused community-based public health initiatives.

Each participant was linked to Dallas County census groups, while a Neighbourhood Deprivation Index (NDI) was calculated for each block group, based on 21 variables from the 2000 US Census to determine the socioeconomic status (SES) of each block group. Higher NDI values indicate a higher level of deprivation. Participants were asked 18 survey questions regarding their perception of the neighbourhood to assess perceived neighbourhood violence, physical environment and social cohesion.

“This study sheds important light on the impact that changes in neighbourhood socioeconomic deprivation by moving [house] can have on weight change and subsequent obesity,” said lead investigator Tiffany M Powell-Wiley from the division of Intramural Research at the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute.

Among people who relocated, 263 participants moved to a higher NDI neighbourhood, 586 to a lower NDI neighbourhood, 47 participants moved but had no NDI change and 939 participants remained in the same place.

Those who moved to higher NDI neighbourhoods gained more weight compared to those who remained at the same NDI or moved to lower NDI. The weight increase was 0.64kg per 1-unit NDI increase.

Among those who moved to higher NDI neighbourhoods, the impact of NDI change on weight gain increased for those who lived in a new neighbourhood for more than four years – with additional weight gain equalling 0.85kg per 1-unit NDI increase.