Urban Sprawl's Effect on Obesity and Cancer in Georgia

"Our aim is to analyze the effects that obesity, physical activity, smoking, and caloric intake have on cancer and outline economic factors such as urban/rural differences and urban sprawl influencing obesity, smoking, and cancer in Georgia through econometric analysis. Focus on interdisciplinary work when approaching issues of cancer prevention is key in implementing prevention strategies. Approaching the problem through an economic framework will allow us to focus on how people allocate their scarce resources (whether they be time or money) to maximize their lifetime utility or happiness in making their decisions when it comes to health. This is of particular importance when looking at behaviors that may directly influence the contraction of cancer and carries with it significant policy implications. In our empirical work, we use time-series cross-sectional Georgia cancer data for the years 1994 to 2001 from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) and the Georgia Department of Human Resources, Division of Public Healths Online Analytical Statistical Information System (OASIS). We merge these data with county-level data for sales for eating and drinking places and grocery stores from County Business Patterns, urban sprawl data from Smart Growth America, and food price data from the American Chamber of Commerce Researchers Association (ACCRA)." [Abstract from Conference Program and Book of Abstracts]

[Concurrent Session I-F: Human Health Issues]

[Presented at "Emerging Issues Along Urban/Rural Interfaces: Linking Science and Society", a conference held March 13-16, 2005 in Atlanta, GA (US)]