Hindawi Publishing Corporation Journal of Environmental and Public Health Volume 2012, Article ID 127857, 6 pages doi:10.1155/2012/127857 Research Article Associations between Safety from Crime, Cycling, and Obesity in a Dutch Elderly Population: Results from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam Stef P. J. Kremers,1 Gert-Jan de Bruijn,2 Tommy L. S. Visscher,3, 4 Dorly J. H. Deeg,4 G. C. Fleur Thome´ se,5 Marjolein Visser,4 Willem van Mechelen,6 and Johannes Brug4 1 Department of Health Promotion, School for Nutrition, Toxicology and Metabolism (NUTRIM), Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands 2 Amsterdam School of Communication Research, 1012 CX Amsterdam, The Netherlands 3 Research Centre for the Prevention of Overweight, VU-Windesheim, 8000 GB Zwolle, The Netherlands 4 EMGO Institute, VU University Medical Center, 1081 BT Amsterdam, The Netherlands 5 Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, VU University, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands 6 Department of Public and Occupational Health and EMGO Institute, VU University Medical Center, 1081 BT Amsterdam, The Netherlands Correspondence should be addressed to Stef P. J. Kremers, s.kremers@maastrichtuniversity.nl Received 8 September 2011; Revised 16 December 2011; Accepted 17 December 2011 Academic Editor: Rodrigo Siqueira Reis Copyright © 2012 Stef P. J. Kremers et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The objective of this cross-sectional study was to investigate diﬀerences in associations between crime rates, cycling, and weight status between people living in low and high socioeconomic status (SES) neighbourhoods. In total, 470 participants in the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam were included (age: 63–70 y). Body height and weight were measured using a stadiometer and calibrated weight scale, respectively. Cycling behaviour was assessed in a face-to-face interview, and neighbourhood crime rates were assessed using data from police reports. Men residing in high SES neighbourhoods cycled more than males residing in low SES neighbourhoods. Cycling was negatively related to crime rates among both men and women living in low SES neighbourhoods. Among men living in low SES neighbourhoods, more cycling was associated with lower BMI. Interventions aiming to prevent obesity in older people may consider aiming at increasing bicycle use in lower SES neighbourhoods, but neighbourhood safety issues should be considered. 1. Introduction Obesity prevalence rates have increased worldwide in recent decades [1–4] and represent a major public health problem [5–8]. Absolute risk for disease associated with obesity is highest in the elderly [9]. Although genetic factors are thought to inﬂuence the individual susceptibility to obesity [10], environmental and behavioural factors are arguably of greater importance to the current obesity epidemic [11]. Weight gain occurs when energy intake exceeds energy expenditure over a period of time, leading to a positive energy balance. With respect to energy expenditure, cycling is more energy intensive per unit of time than walking [12], and it is a common mode of active transport in some countries with favorable city planning and infrastructure, such as The Netherlands and the Scandinavian countries [13]. In The Netherlands, cycling is also relatively common among elderly. Approximately 55% of the Dutch 55–75- year-old population cycles more than one hour per week on average [14]. Cycling is deemed important in the prevention of obesity [12]. About 75% of Dutch 65–74 year-olds is overweight or obese [15]. Evidence exists that individual socioeconomic status (SES), based on such indicators as educational level and income level, is associated with obesity [16–19]. Further- more, neighbourhood SES has been found to be associated