Porto's diabetes's prevalence : a good reason to rethink urban planning

Abstract

The current Porto's form and structure, resulting from a history of more than 8 centuries, show somedysfunctions that may be materialized, for example, in some health, quality of life and well beingindicators. Having in mind some important risk factors for diabetes (type 2) - i.e. life style, diet, physicalactivity - and the huge increase of this disease in recent years, we collect and analyze the frequency ofoccurrence and the spatial distribution of diabetes's admissions in Porto's four main hospitals between2000 and 2007. We conclude that there seem to be, at Porto, some objective and subjective conditionsrelated to urban planning decisions that might help to explain the diabetes's spatial distribution. Lookingfrom a geographical perspective to the Porto's urban supply and demand - biogeophysical, functional,demographic, social and economical - we find an, at least apparent, coincidence between the areas wherethe relative weight of diabetics is higher and the supply of conditions for the practice of leisure andrecreation is of lesser quality and socio-economic status of residents is more fragile (age, income,literacy, etc.) Looking through this data relationship, it seems that Porto's diabetes prevalence may be agood reason to motivate citizens, urban planners and decision-makers to rethink sustainable urbanplanning policies nowadays.