Objective

To describe the association between the Neighborhood Walkability and mortality.

Method

Ecological study of small areas. The standardized mortality ratios (SMR) and the Walk Score© were calculated in each census tract. These values were compared with parametric and nonparametric tests.

Results

For men, in the case of ischemic diseases, the means of the SMR for the categories with the highest walkability and the least were 1.03 and 0.85 (p <0.01), and in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) were 1,009 and 1.20 (p <0.01). In women, the means of the SMR for diabetes were 0.97 and 1.2 (p <0.01), for ischemic diseases were 1.01 and 1.12 (p <0.01), for cerebrovascular diseases were 1.007 and 1.18 (p <0.01), for COPD were 1.01 and 1.49 (p <0.01) and for all causes were 1.006 and 1.08 (p <0.01)

Conclusions

Behavior about walking in the activities of daily life is different between sexes. Living in walkable neighborhoods is a protective factor for women.

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