Perspectives in Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Behavioral Risk-Factor Surveillance -- Selected States, 1984
During 1984, 15 states collected behavioral risk-factor
surveillance (BRFS) data from their adult populations by monthly
telephone interviews using random digit-dialing techniques. The
interviews were conducted using standard questionnaires and
procedures
developed jointly by the state health departments and CDC. The
data
collected included seatbelt nonuse, hypertensive status, physical
activity, overweight status, cigarette smoking, and alcohol misuse.
The results presented here are based on 1 year of data collection
and
are weighted to take into account the age, race, and sex
distribution
of adults in each state, as well as the respondents' probability of
selection (Table 1). These data represent the first year of
routine
surveillance of behavioral risk factors in the states. The data
allow
state health departments to compare the prevalence of risk
behaviors
associated with the 10 leading causes of premature death among
adults
in their state with adults in other states. These data will be
used
to monitor trends and to monitor statewide programs to reduce the
prevalence of these behaviors.
Reported by R Brooks, Office of Health Education, Arizona Dept of
Health Svcs; F Capell, Health Education-Risk Reduction Program,
California Dept of Health Svcs; JV Patterson, Health Education
Section, Bureau of Preventative Medicine, Idaho Dept of Health and
Welfare; D Patterson, Div of Education and Information, Illinois
Dept
of Public Health; L Weiland, Div of Health Education, Indiana State
Board of Health; N Salem, Minnesota Center for Health Statistics; R
Moon, Health Education and Promotion Program, Montana Dept of
Health
and Environmental Sciences; R Staton, Health Promotion Br, Div of
Health Svcs, North Carolina Dept of Human Resources; E Capwell,
Bureau
of Preventive Medicine, Ohio Dept of Health; J Cataldo, Div of
Health
Promotion, Rhode Island Dept of Health; FC Wheeler, Div of Chronic
Disease, South Carolina Dept of Health and Environmental Control; J
Fortune, Div of Health Promotion, Tennessee Dept of Health and
Environment; GV Lindsay, Bureau of Health Promotion and Risk
Reduction, Div of Community Health Svcs, Utah Dept of Health; R
Anderson, Health Education Dept, West Virginia Dept of Health; DR
Murray, Wisconsin Center for Health Statistics; Div of Nutrition,
Center for Health Promotion and Education, CDC.
Editorial Note
Editorial Note: State-specific estimates of behavioral risk factors
from prior years have been previously reported (1-4). There are
differences between this report and previous data. "Acute
drinking"
in previous reports is now entitled "binge drinking"; "chronic
heavier
drinking" in previous reports is now entitled "heavier drinking";
"sedentary lifestyle" in this report is computed by a revised
algorithm (see footnotes); and "lack of seatbelt use" in previous
reports is now entitled "seatbelt nonuse" and is now computed from
different response categories. Direct comparisons can be made with
the previous reports with the exception of "sedentary lifestyles"
and
"seatbelt nonuse."
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