Healthy
Conditions
Keywords
RCT, Park Prescription, Park Use, Physical Activity, Health Promotion, Health Behavior, Mental Well-Being, Body composition, Blood levels, Accelerometry, Improving general physical and mental health
Brief summary
The purpose of this study is to test the effectiveness of prescribing park use (i.e., ''Park Prescription'') to insufficiently active individuals. It is hypothesized that Park Prescription will motivate the target population to increase physical activity and thereby improve their physical and mental health.
Detailed description
BACKGROUND: There are substantial international research findings supporting the role that natural environments play in enhancing human health and the prevention of chronic diseases. Also, there is evidence highlighting the (cost-) effectiveness of prescribing physical activity to promote one's physical activity and health. However, there is a lack of methodologically rigorous studies that have looked into the effectiveness of combining these two promising approaches; i.e., physical activity prescription with a focus on the use of parks and green spaces: Park Prescription. AIMS: This Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) will investigate the concept of Park Prescription as a health promoting intervention for individuals. The primary objective is to investigate the effectiveness of a park prescription interventions to increase participant's time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Main secondary objectives are to assess; A) improvement in physical health (e.g., blood sugar and blood pressure) and health behaviour (e.g., sitting time); B) improvement in mental health (e.g., quality of life); 3) intervention implementation fidelity and the association with park use and perceived study participant satisfaction. METHODOLOGY: Participants aged between 40 and 65 years will be recruited from the Singapore Population Health Community Screening Programme conducted by Alexandra Health Pte Ltd. They will be randomly assigned to one of the following two arms; 1) park prescription + participation in a weekly structured physical activity program conducted in the park, and 2) control group. Participants will be enrolled in the study for a period of 6 months. They will have to complete a baseline assessment, 3-month and 6-month follow-up. The investigators aim to recruit 80 participants in each arm, making a total of 160 study participants.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALPark Prescription
Please refer to the information included in the arm description.
Sponsors
National Parks Board, Singapore
Khoo Teck Puat Hospital
National University of Singapore
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
40 Years to 65 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
Subjects must meet all of the inclusion criteria as listed below to participate in the study. Study participants must: 1. be not currently sufficiently active (less than 150 minutes per week of exercise); 2. complete and pass the PAR-Q+\*; 3. have a blood pressure of less or equal to (\<=) 139 mmHG (systolic) over less or equal to (\<=) 89 mmHG (diastolic); 4. have fasting glucose levels of less or equal to (\<=) 6.0 mmol/l); 5. be Singaporean or Permanent Residents; 6. be able to write and read; 7. provide informed consent.
Exclusion criteria
All subjects meeting any of the following
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Hours/week spent in Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity (MVPA) assessed objectively with accelerometry | At 6 months follow-up |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Total cholesterol (mmol/l) | At 6 months follow-up |
| LDL (mmol/l) | At 6 months follow-up |
| HDL (mmol/l) | At 6 months follow-up |
| Triglycerides (mmol/l) | At 6 months follow-up |
| Blood pressure (mmHG) | At 6 months follow-up |
| Fasting glucose levels (mmol/l) | At 6 months follow-up |
| Waist circumference (cm) | At 6 months follow-up |
| Psychological distress assessed with Kessler-10 | At 6 months follow-up |
| Physical and mental health functioning assessed with SF-12 | At 6 months follow-up |
| Hours/week spent in Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity (MVPA) assessed by self-report | At 6 months follow-up |
| Hours/week spent in sedentary behaviour assessed by self-report | At 6 months follow-up |
| Body Mass Index (kg/m^2) | At 6 months follow-up |
Countries
Singapore
Outcome results
None listed