???Neighbourhoods designed to encourage people to walk to and from the shops and public transport will help reduce hospital costs and admissions linked to residents, new Canberra research shows.

The research project, from the University of Canberra’s Health Research Institute, has revealed a relationship between a suburb’s “walkability score” and a reduction in both hospital costs and admissions.

Published in international journal Preventive Medicine this week, the study is the first to connect the dots between “walkability” measures and hospital costs and admissions, and adds to the growing debate surrounding the role of “social determinants” in health outcomes.