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Table 3 Summary of findings table for comparison 1.1—Changes in green or other spaces

From: Infrastructure, policy and regulatory interventions to increase physical activity to prevent cardiovascular diseases and diabetes: a systematic review

Population: Children and adults living in study communities

Setting: Communities and neighbourhoods in high-income countries

Intervention: Changes in green or other spaces such as renovating or building playgrounds or parks, implementing playstreets, greening vacant lots or building multipurpose exercise facilities, to increase physical activity

Comparison: control (no intervention or distance from intervention site)

Outcomes

№ of participants

(studies)

Follow-up

Certainty of the evidence (GRADE)

Impact

Physical activity

assessed with: MVPA, meeting PA guidelines, TDPA, time walking, cycling or taking part in sports

follow-up: range 1 weeks to 3.5 years

(12 observational studies)

Very lowa,b

A range of effects reported across 12 studies: clear effect favouring the control in one study, unclear effect potentially favouring the control in four studies, unclear effect potentially favouring the intervention in four studies, and a clear effect favouring the intervention in three studies

CVD mortality—not reported

   

Diabetes mortality—not reported

   

CVD morbidity—not reported

   

Diabetes morbidity—not reported

   

Body weight

assessed with: BMI z-scores

follow-up: 16 months

(2 observational studies)

Very lowb

One study reported an unclear effect potentially favouring the intervention in children (Goldsby 2016 [44]) and the other an unclear effect potentially favouring the control in all ages (Richardson 2020 [50])

Blood pressure

assessed with: self-report

(1 observational study)

Very lowc

One CBA study (Branas 2011 [39]) indicates no effect of an intervention where vacant lots are greened to create a park-like setting) regression coefficient 0.63, 95% CI 0.32 to 0.94)

  1. Explanations
  2. aDowngraded by 1 due to inconsistency: effect direction varied across included studies
  3. bDowngraded by 1 due to imprecision: most studies' results fall into an unclear effect category because of wide confidence intervals which include both beneficial and harmful effects
  4. cDowngraded by 1 due to risk of bias: outcome was self-reported