BETHESDA, Md., July 13 -- More low-birth-weight infants are being born but older kids are heavier than ever, according to the federal government's latest snapshot of child health.
In its 10th annual report, the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics showed little change in the overall well-being of American children from last year's numbers, but it revealed a few encouraging as well as a few distressing trends.
The report, titled America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2007, is a compilation of statistics on children's health, family life, housing, education, and behavior, gathered from cabinet-level departments plus the Environmental Protection Agency, National Science Foundation, and the Office of Management and Budget.
"When we review the health aspects of the report, we see some continuing problems, we see progress, and we see differences by race, by ethnicity and by poverty level or income level," commented Edward Sondik, Ph.D., director of the National Center for Health Statistics, in a press briefing.
Among the positives, he said are improved immunization rates among toddlers over the past decade, with 81% of children ages 19 to 35 months having received the recommended series of vaccinations, up from 70% in 1994.
"This indicator is particularly significant, because we do not see differences here by race or ethnicity," he said.
In addition, the birth rate for teens 15 to 17 has continued to decline, to a record low of 21 per 1,000, down from 39 per 1,000 in 1991. The birth rate for non-Hispanic black girls declined by 60% from 1991 to 2005, reversing a trend toward higher teen births in this population from 1986 to 1991. Among non-Hispanic white girls, the birth rate declined by half over the same period.
Second-hand smoke, as measured by detectable levels of the nicotine metabolite cotinine in the blood of children, also declined significantly, from 88% in 1988 to 1094, to 59% in 2001 to 2004.
"But still, more than half of children ages four to 11 have detectable levels," Dr. Sondik said.
Asthma rates, included as a health indicator for the first time in the annual reports, occurred in 2005 in about 9% of children from birth to age 17, with about 5% of all children having or more asthma attacks during the previous year. As seen in other studies, asthma prevalence was higher among African Americans, at 13%, and although Hispanics in general had about a 9% asthma prevalence, the prevalence among children of Puerto Rican origin was 20%, compared with only about 5% for Mexican Americans.
"It must be related to some kinds of differences in the environments to which they were exposed as younger children, or genetic susceptibility differences among these subparts of the population," commented Duane Alexander, M.D., director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Among the negative trends was the increase in the percentage of infants with a low birth weight, which has grown steadily from 6.7% in 1984, to 9.2% in 2003.
"We've got all this technology to help kids with low birth weight survive, but what we haven't been as successful with is prenatal care, particularly for low income populations, and that's what determines a lot of the low birth weights that we see," said community health specialist Shari Nethersole, M.D., of Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School, who was not involved with the report.
Over roughly the same period, the proportion of children ages six to 17 who were overweight increased from 6% in 1976 to 1980 to 11% in 1988 to 1994 and continued to rise to 18 in 2003 to 2004. Dr. Sondik cited the prospect, if the trend continues, of higher rates of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other health problems.
Among the other notable elements of the report (all changes are significant unless otherwise noted):
5% of children ages four to 17 were reported by a parent to have definite or severe emotional or behavioral difficulties. Eighty-one percent of the parents consulted a health care provider or school staff member about their child's difficulties, 40% reported that their child was prescribed medication for the problem, and 47% reported that the child had received non-drug therapy.
60% of children in 2005 were living in counties where one or more air pollutants was above allowable levels, up from 46% in 2004.
10% of children lived in communities with substandard drinking water, up from 8% in 2004.
Blood lead levels in children ages one to five were unchanged, at a median of 1.6 g/dL.
More children are living in households where the cost of shelter is burdensome, conditions are crowded, or the housing is physically inadequate. The rate was 40% in 2005, compared with 37% in 2003.
The rate of adolescents ages 12 to 17 involved in serious crimes increased from 14/1,000 in 2004, to 17/1,000 in 2005.
The report is available for download at
http://childstats.gov or by clicking the complimentary link at the top right of your screen.
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