SynthesisInternational journal of environmental research and public health2017
Within What Distance Does "Greenness" Best Predict Physical Health? A Systematic Review of Articles with GIS Buffer Analyses across the Lifespan.
Synthesis in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 102 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
102 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Association between green space exposure and elderly health: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC public health · 2026Pooled it
- Neighborhood infrastructure-related risk factors and non-communicable diseases: a systematic meta-review.Environmental health : a global access science source · 2023Pooled it
- Green Space and Health Equity: A Systematic Review on the Potential of Green Space to Reduce Health Disparities.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Pooled it
- The Association between Green Space and Adolescents' Mental Well-Being: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Pooled it
- Social Inequalities in Environmental Resources of Green and Blue Spaces: A Review of Evidence in the WHO European Region.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2019Pooled it
- School Green Space and Its Impact on Academic Performance: A Systematic Literature Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2019Pooled it
- Beyond Green Cover: Links Between Greenspace Morphology, Configuration, and Heat-Related Illness in Arizona.GeoHealth · 2026Article
- Optimal Scale of Greenspace Exposure for Pulmonary Tuberculosis Treatment Success: Multi-scale Associations and Interactions with Air Pollutants.Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine · 2026Article
- Association of long-term exposure to green space with cardiovascular health and the mediating role of triglyceride-glucose in dex in middle-aged and older Chinese adults: a nationwide cohort study.Journal of geriatric cardiology : JGC · 2026Article
- Urban greenspace and dementia: Measures, mechanisms, and methodological guidance.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2026Review
- How nature nurtures: prenatal exposure to green space buffers the effects of maternal stress on neonatal BDNF methylation.Molecular psychiatry · 2026Article
- Spatial Social Polarization and Cardiometabolic Disease Prevalence and Incidence: What Is the Role of the Neighborhood Environment?Journal of health and social behavior · 2026Article
- Spatial distribution of central obesity in rural and peri urban communities of Botswana: a nested Botswana Combination Prevention Project (BCPP) cross-sectional study.BMC public health · 2026Observational
- Perceived commuting stress, residential nighttime light, and mental health: an environmental stress perspective.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Association between residential greenness and anemia risk among women of reproductive age in low- and middle-income countries.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Early life stress enhances the association between residential nature exposure and fasting blood glucose.PloS one · 2026Article
- Local environmental attributes and type 2 diabetes: Green amenities, walkability indicators, and air pollution are associated with incidence.Environment international · 2025Article
- Artificial outdoor light at night and depression in older adults in the USA, England, Northern Ireland, and Ireland.Environment international · 2025Article
- Cultivating Health: The Role of Urban Greening in Supporting Baltimore's Youth.Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine · 2025Article
- Greenspace proximity in relation to sleep health among a racially and ethnically diverse cohort of US women.Environmental research · 2025Article
42 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Is the amount of "greenness" within a 250-m, 500-m, 1000-m or a 2000-m buffer surrounding a person's home a good predictor of their physical health? The evidence is inconclusive. We reviewed Web of Science articles that used geographic information system buffer analyses to identify trends between physical health, greenness, and distance within which greenness is measured. Our inclusion criteria were: (1) use of buffers to estimate residential greenness; (2) statistical analyses that calculated significance of the greenness-physical health relationship; and (3) peer-reviewed articles published in English between 2007 and 2017. To capture multiple findings from a single article, we selected our unit of inquiry as the analysis, not the article. Our final sample included 260 analyses in 47 articles. All aspects of the review were in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. Analyses were independently judged as more, less, or least likely to be biased based on the inclusion of objective health measures and income/education controls. We found evidence that larger buffer sizes, up to 2000 m, better predicted physical health than smaller ones. We recommend that future analyses use nested rather than overlapping buffers to evaluate to what extent greenness
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.