Thursday, March 28, 2024
Hawai'i Free Press

Current Articles | Archives

Saturday, April 18, 2015
DoH: Tobacco Use Down 20%, E-Cigs Up
By News Release @ 2:12 PM :: 4800 Views :: Hawaii Statistics, Health Care

The 2013 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data are in!

From Hawaii Department of Health, April, 2015

The 2013 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Data (BRFSS) data are in! Big thanks to the nearly 8,000 Hawaii adult residents who participated in this important survey in 2013! Because of you, we can continue to monitor trends in topics from chronic disease to injuries in our state. BRFSS is an annual, confidential, phone survey. If you are chosen to participate, please do!

Here are some of the results from the 2013 BRFSS survey…

More than 1 in 4 adults in Hawaii have been diagnosed with high blood pressure. Men and women are equally likely to have this condition, but the rate is highest among Japanese (40%). Among people with high blood pressure, almost 80% take medication to help control it. Over half of the adult population (58%) is taking the preventive step of watching their sodium intake. The American Heart Association recommends consuming less than 1500 mg of sodium per day to decrease the risk of developing high blood pressure.

Only 2/3 of adults aged 50-75 years have had a colorectal cancer screening in the past 10 years. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends adults begin colorectal cancer screening at the age of 50 years, unless you have additional risk factors such as a family history of colon cancer. Over 200 hundred adults in Hawaii die of colon cancer each year. If the disease is caught early through screening, the chance of survival increases greatly. If you are 50 or older, talk to your doctor about colorectal cancer screening.

The prevalence of cigarette smoking among adults in Hawaii decreased by more than 20% from 2011 to 2013. In 2013, 13% of adults reported being current cigarette smokers. The rate remains elevated among Native Hawaiians (22%) and men (16%). The good news is more than 60% of smokers stopped for a day or more because they were trying to quit smoking. If you are a smoker and you’d like to quit, contact the Hawaii Quitline (808-784-8669) for free support and coaching.

For more of the latest results from BRFSS, go here and select your topic area of interest. And don’t forget to visit our sister site, Hawaii Health Matters, for additional information!

The 2013 Youth Tobacco Survey (YTS) data are in!

Cigarette smoking among high school students continues to show a downward trend. In 2013, 6.7% of high schoolers and 3.6% of middle school students reported having smoked a cigarette in the past 30 days. However, use of e-cigarettes continues to grow at an alarming rate. Between 2011 and 2013, the percentage of youth who had tried e-cigarettes increased over 250% among high school students and over 315% among middle school youth! One in ten high school students report current use of e-cigarettes. With little knowledge available on the true effects of inhaling vaporized tobacco, the growth in e-cigarette use among youth is troubling.

On a better note, secondhand smoke exposure in vehicles and rooms continues to decline. In 2013, 17.7% of high school students and 12.7% of middle school students reported being exposed to cigarette smoke in a vehicle in the past week. Additionally, the proportion of students who report that smoking in their home is never allowed continues to grow.

This year, we’ve added reports on hookah usage, past year initiation of tobacco use, and perceptions of the social standing of smokers.

For additional information: Questionnaire, documentation and latest data.

Summary report, "Data Highlights from 2013 Hawaii Youth Tobacco Survey (YTS) and Comparisons with Prior Years"

Links

TEXT "follow HawaiiFreePress" to 40404

Register to Vote

2aHawaii

808 Silent Majority

Aloha Pregnancy Care Center

AntiPlanner

Antonio Gramsci Reading List

A Place for Women in Waipio

Ballotpedia Hawaii

Broken Trust

Build More Hawaiian Homes Working Group

Christian Homeschoolers of Hawaii

Cliff Slater's Second Opinion

DVids Hawaii

FIRE

Fix Oahu!

Frontline: The Fixers

Genetic Literacy Project

Grassroot Institute

Habele.org

Hawaii Aquarium Fish Report

Hawaii Aviation Preservation Society

Hawaii Catholic TV

Hawaii Christian Coalition

Hawaii Cigar Association

Hawaii ConCon Info

Hawaii Debt Clock

Hawaii Defense Foundation

Hawaii Family Forum

Hawaii Farmers and Ranchers United

Hawaii Farmer's Daughter

Hawaii Federalist Society

Hawaii Federation of Republican Women

Hawaii History Blog

Hawaii Homeschool Association

Hawaii Jihadi Trial

Hawaii Legal News

Hawaii Legal Short-Term Rental Alliance

Hawaii Matters

Hawaii's Partnership for Appropriate & Compassionate Care

Hawaii Public Charter School Network

Hawaii Rifle Association

Hawaii Shippers Council

Hawaii Smokers Alliance

Hawaii State Data Lab

Hawaii Together

HIEC.Coop

HiFiCo

Hiram Fong Papers

Homeschool Legal Defense Hawaii

Honolulu Moms for Liberty

Honolulu Navy League

Honolulu Traffic

House Minority Blog

Imua TMT

Inouye-Kwock, NYT 1992

Inside the Nature Conservancy

Inverse Condemnation

Investigative Project on Terrorism

July 4 in Hawaii

Kakaako Cares

Keep Hawaii's Heroes

Land and Power in Hawaii

Legislative Committee Analysis Tool

Lessons in Firearm Education

Lingle Years

Managed Care Matters -- Hawaii

Malama Pregnancy Center of Maui

MentalIllnessPolicy.org

Military Home Educators' Network Oahu

Missile Defense Advocacy

MIS Veterans Hawaii

NAMI Hawaii

Natatorium.org

National Christian Foundation Hawaii

National Parents Org Hawaii

NFIB Hawaii News

No GMO Means No Aloha

Not Dead Yet, Hawaii

NRA-ILA Hawaii

Oahu Alternative Transport

Obookiah

OHA Lies

Opt Out Today

OurFutureHawaii.com

Patients Rights Council Hawaii

PEACE Hawaii

People vs Machine

Practical Policy Institute of Hawaii

Pritchett Cartoons

Pro-GMO Hawaii

P.U.E.O.

RailRipoff.com

Rental by Owner Awareness Assn

ReRoute the Rail

Research Institute for Hawaii USA

Rick Hamada Show

RJ Rummel

Robotics Organizing Committee

School Choice in Hawaii

SenatorFong.com

Sink the Jones Act

Statehood for Guam

Talking Tax

Tax Foundation of Hawaii

The Real Hanabusa

Time Out Honolulu

Trustee Akina KWO Columns

UCC Truths

US Tax Foundation Hawaii Info

VAREP Honolulu

Waagey.org

West Maui Taxpayers Association

What Natalie Thinks

Whole Life Hawaii

Yes2TMT