Friday, June 22, 2012

Health of Americans a Mixed Bag: CDC Report

Highlights of the report include:
  • The percentage of adults who drink five or more alcoholic drinks a day has dropped after increasing between 2004 and 2010, to just over 22 percent in 2011.
  • Self-reported obesity in Americans over age 20 has climbed from 19.4 percent in 1997 to 28.7 percent in 2011.
  • One in five adults aged 65 and older has diabetes versus one in 10 among those aged 45 to 54.
  • Only 2.4 percent of Americans rate their personal health as poor.
  • Among black children under 15 years of age, 16.6 percent have asthma; that figure is 10 percent for Hispanic children and 7.5 percent for white kids.
  • Fifty percent of adults aged 25 to 44 say they have been tested for HIV.
  • In 2011, 48.4 percent of adults aged 18 and older said they did aerobic exercise -- the highest percentage ever reported.
  • For 6.5 percent of Americans, cost kept them from seeking needed medical care.
  • Among those aged 65 and older, 7.3 percent needed assistance with personal care in 2011, compared with 6.4 percent in 2000.
  • More adults (3.4 percent) had serious psychological distress during 2011 than in 1999 (2.4 percent).
  • The number of U.S. adults who smoke dropped from 24.7 percent in 1997 to 18.9 percent in 2011.
  • Most Americans (87 percent) had a usual place to go for medical care in 2011, a little more than the 2010 estimate of 85.4 percent.
  • In 2011, almost 67 percent of those aged 65 and older had received a vaccine against pneumonia, a significant increase from 43 percent in 1997.


See complete news article at HealthDay.

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