1 / 25

The Health of Massachusetts Youth

The Health of Massachusetts Youth. Results from the Massachusetts Youth Health Survey (YHS) and Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Department of Public Health Health Survey Program. Goal.

freya
Download Presentation

The Health of Massachusetts Youth

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. The Health of Massachusetts Youth Results from the Massachusetts Youth Health Survey (YHS) and Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Department of Public Health Health Survey Program

  2. Goal To perform in-depth analysis of health and lifestyle measures of Massachusetts adolescents, utilizing long term data collection for high school students and unique state specific questions.

  3. Sample 2011 Statewide sample • 54 public high schools • YHS: 2,642 students • YRBS: 2,729 students • 83 public middle schools • YHS: 3,554 students • Overall response rates • High School: 69% • Middle School: 63% YHS = Youth Health Survey, YRBS = Youth Risk Behavior Survey

  4. Department of Public Health Department of Elementary and Secondary Education YHS YRBS Middle School (state questions) High School (state questions) High School (CDC + state questions) Joint Report 2007, 2009, 2011 New DPH Report 2011 Two surveys – Two reports Combined File 28 Questions

  5. Content of the Reports • The joint report • High school data over time (2003-2011). • Three years of middle school data (2007-2011). • The new DPH report • 2011 data by gender, race/ethnicity, and grade for middle and high school students. • Associations between health and risk behaviors. • The two reports complement each other • Broad picture of the health of Massachusetts youth.

  6. Overview • Progress • Bullying in school • Violence • Alcohol use • Cigarette use • Challenges • Drug Use • Obesity • Physical Activity/Nutrition • Sexual Behavior and Sexual Education • Emerging Issues • Cyber-bullying • Sports-related Traumatic Brain Injury • Texting While Driving

  7. PROGRESS

  8. *Significant decrease since 2003 Bullying 2011 National: 20%

  9. *Significant decrease since 2003 State average 9% * *Significant decrease since 2003 Violence 2011 National: 33% 2011 National: n/a *p< 0.05

  10. *Significant decrease since 2003 * * Alcohol 2011 National: 71% *p< 0.05, Ref. White

  11. *Significant decrease since 2003 Alcohol (continued) 2011 National: 8% • 25% of middle school students believed that most people their age drank alcohol. • 85% of high school students believed that most people their age drank alcohol.

  12. *Significant decrease since 2003 * * * *Significant decrease since 2003 † Cigarette Use 2011 National: 18% 2011 National: 10% *p < 0.05, Ref. White † Insufficient data

  13. Other Tobacco Use 2011 National: 8% 2011 National: 13%

  14. CHALLENGES

  15. *Significant decrease since 2003 * * Drug Use 2011 National: 40% 2011 National: 8% *p< 0.05, Ref. White

  16. * * Drug Use and Smoking More high school students report current use of marijuana than current use of cigarettes (27% vs. 13%). *p< 0.05

  17. * State average 9% *p < 0.05 Ref. White State average 10% * * *p < 0.05 comparing males and females Obesity 2011 National: 13%

  18. * Physical Activity/Nutrition Middle school students were more likely than high school students to have eaten 3+ fruits or vegetables on the day prior to the survey (67% vs. 58%). *p< 0.05, Ref. White

  19. *Significant decrease since 2003 * Sexual Behavior and Sexual Education 2011 National: 84% *p< 0.05, Ref. White

  20. EMERGING ISSUES

  21. * State average 16% * Cyber-bullying • Middle School: Females twice as likely as males to report being a victim of cyber-bullying (19% vs. 9%). * p< 0.05 comparing males and females

  22. * * Symptoms of a Sports-related Traumatic Brain Injury, 2011 • Students in 8th grade were more likely than students in 6th grade to report experiencing symptoms of a sports-related TBI in the past year (24% vs. 18%). *p < 0.05 comparing male to female

  23. Texting While Driving, Among High School Drivers, 2011 • No significant differences were observed by gender or race/ethnicity.

  24. Conclusions • Many health indicators have significantly improved over time. • Racial and gender disparities continue to exist. • New data collected on emerging issues. • Future surveys will adapt to new issues. • Reports emphasize areas of improving health and areas where interventions are needed.

  25. Acknowledgments • DPH staff: Helen Hawk, Diane Gonsalves, Maria McKenna, Bruce Cohen • DESE staff: Carol Goodenow and Chiniqua Milligan • Tony Roman and staff at UMASS Center for Survey Research

More Related