New research suggests that a person's socioeconomic, physical, and social environments can affect opportunities for healthy behaviors that might prevent excess weight gain, according to a recent study.

Researchers found that people who moved to more socioeconomically deprived neighborhoods gained additional weight.

"This study identifies exposure to higher-deprivation neighborhoods with moving as a risk factor for weight gain, and suggests a potential source of disparities that can be addressed through focused community-based public health initiatives," researchers said in their study. "More broadly, addressing neighborhood deprivation as a risk factor for obesity and obesity-related cardiovascular disease requires consideration of public policy that can address sources of deprivation."

For the study, researchers analyzed data from more than 3,000 Dallas County residents between the ages of 18 and 65 years old.

Among people who relocated, 263 participants moved to a higher-NDI neighborhood, 586 to a lower-NDI neighborhood, 47 participants moved but had no NDI change, and 939 participants remained in the same neighborhood. Those who moved to higher-NDI areas gained more weight compared to those who remained at the same NDI or moved to lower NDI (0.64 kg per 1-unit NDI increase).

They also found that among those who moved to higher-NDI neighborhoods, the impact of NDI change on weight gain increased for those who lived in a new neighborhood for more than four years, with a mean additional weight gain per 1-unit NDI increase of 0.85 kg.

The findings are detailed in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.