Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From January-June 2018 National Health Interview Survey

December 6, 2018

Questions for Lead Author Tainya C. Clarke, Ph.D., M.P.H., Health Statistician, of “Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From January-June 2018 National Health Interview Survey.”

Q: What are some of the findings that you would highlight in this early release report?

TC:  Diabetes and obesity continue to increase among U.S. adults.  The prevalence of diagnosed diabetes among adults aged 18 and over increased from 7.8% in 2006 to 10.2% in January–June 2018.  During the same period the prevalence of obesity among U.S. adults aged 20 and over increased from 26.4%  to 31.7%.

Q: What do the findings in this report tell us about the health of the country overall?

TC:  The health of our nation is multifaceted and quite complex. While we make improvements in some areas, such as increased leisure time physical activity and declining smoking rates, other areas leave a lot to be desired. The prevalence of diabetes and obesity continue to rise.

Q: Are there any trends in this report that Americans should be concerned about?

TC: Yes, the observed increase in the prevalence of diabetes and obesity, suggests that Americans need to work towards achieving a healthy balance between dietary intake and exercise.

Q: Why did you decide to only look back to 2006?  Previous NHIS Early Release reports went back to 1997?

TC: The Early Release Key Health Indicators report transitioned from static quarterly reports to a dynamic report back in June 2018. In the previous format, we included estimates back to 1997, but the trend results were getting unwieldy to produce and interpret on a quarterly basis.  Thus, we made the decision to start the trends at 2006 for the newer format.  Readers can still go back and view the static reports and combined with the dynamic report, they can construct the longer trend.

Q: What is the take home message for this report?

TC: Americans are making significant improvement is some aspects of health, but are falling short in others.

Leave a Comment » | diabetes, health behaviors, National Health Interview Survey, Obesity, smoking | Permalink
Posted by briantsai

Access and Utilization of Selected Preventive Health Services Among Adolescents Aged 10–17

May 11, 2016

Adolescence is a critical period for health promotion, disease prevention, and the development of healthy habits.

Regular preventive health care visits during this period are recommended to promote health and quality of life.

An NCHS report examines recent trends and demographic differences in the percentages of adolescents with a usual place for preventive care; those who had a well-child checkup in the past 12 months; and those who had a dental visit in the past 12 months.

Findings:

  • The percentages of adolescents aged 10–17 who did not have a usual place for preventive care, did not receive a well-child checkup in the past 12 months, or did not have a dental visit in the past 12 months decreased from 2008 to 2014.
  • In 2014, 2% of adolescents aged 10–17 did not have a usual place for preventive care, 21% did not receive a well-child checkup, and 12% did not have a dental visit in the past 12 months.
  • In 2014, the percentages of adolescents not having a usual place for preventive care, not receiving a well-child checkup, and not having a dental visit were higher for those aged 16–17 compared with those in younger age groups. These percentages also varied by race and ethnicity, poverty status, and insurance status.

Leave a Comment » | children, Health, health behaviors, Health Characteristics | Permalink
Posted by briantsai

Cigarette smoking linked to depression in adults

April 21, 2010

Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (2005-2008) has found that adults ages 20 and over with depression were more likely to be cigarette smokers than those without depression.  This key finding is the focus of a new report from NCHS, “Depression and Smoking in the U.S. Household Population Aged 20 and Over, 2005-2008.” This report also found the following:                        

  • Women with depression had smoking rates similar to men with depression, while women without depression smoked less than men.
  • Over one-half of men with depression ages 40–54 were current smokers compared with 26 percent of men without depression of the same age.
  • Among women ages 40–54, of those with depression, 43 percent were smokers compared with 22 percent of those without depression.
  • Among adult smokers, those with depression smoked more heavily than those without depression. They were more likely to smoke their first cigarette within 5 minutes of awakening and to smoke more than one pack of cigarettes per day.
  • Adults with depression were less likely to quit smoking than those without depression.

The graph below shows the percentage of adult smokers with depression from 2005-2008:

 For more, visit: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db34.pdf

1 Comment | Depression, health behaviors, NHANES | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Setareh Kamali

Who will be drinking on St. Patty’s Day?

March 17, 2010

Who will have whiskey in the jar on one of the most popular drinking days of the year? Well, on average,  men are more likely than women to be current drinkers (68% compared with 55%). Men are also more likely to be moderate (22%) or heavy drinkers (6%) than women (7% and 4%, respectively). Youth also contributes to heavier drinking:

Other indicators:

  • White men and women are more likely to be current drinkers than other races, and non-Hispanic adults are more likely than Hispanic adults to be drinkers.
  • Current drinkers increase with education from 44% for adults with less than a high school diploma to 74% for adults with a graduate degree.
  • The prevalence of current drinking increases dramatically with family income.

For more, visit the new report on adult health behaviors at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_245.pdf.

Leave a Comment » | Alcohol, health behaviors, National Center for Health Statistics, National Health Interview Survey | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Megan Cox