Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance - United States, 2011

• NCJ Number: 238794
• Author(s): Danice K. Eaton, Ph.D.; Laura Kann, Ph.D.; Steve Kinchen; Shari Shanklin, M.S.; Katherine H. Flint, M.S.; Joseph Hawkins, M.A.; William A. Harris, M.M.; Richard Lowry, M.D.; Tim McManus, M.S.; David Chyen, M.S.; Lisa Whittle, M.P.H.; Connie Lim, M.P.A.; Howell Weschler, Ed.D.
• Date Published: June 2012
• Length: 168 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Ctr's for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Sale Source: Ctr's for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Statistics
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report Surveillance Summaries, V 61, No. 4, June 8, 2012

Annotation

This report presents the results of the annual Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance from 2011 collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Abstract

Highlights from the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance (YRBS) include the following: in the 30-days prior to the survey, 32.8 percent of high school students nationwide had texted or e-mailed while driving, 38.7 percent had drunk alcohol, and 23.1 percent had used marijuana; in the 12-months prior to the survey, 32.8 percent had been in a physical fight, 20.1 percent had ever been bullied on school property, and 7.8 percent had attempted suicide; almost half of the students, 47.4 percent, had ever had sexual intercourse, 33.7 percent had sexual intercourse in the 3 months prior to the survey, and 15.3 percent had had sexual intercourse with four or more persons during their life; and during the 30 days prior to the survey, 18.1 percent had smoked cigarettes and 7.7 percent had used smokeless tobacco. The YRBS is an annual survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that measures health-risk behaviors among high school students. Six categories of priority health-risk behaviors among young adults and youth are measured by the survey. These categories are: 1) behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence; 2) tobacco use; 3) alcohol and other drug use; 4) sexual behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection; 5) unhealthy dietary behaviors; and 6) physical inactivity. Data for this report were collected between September 2010 and December 2011 the following methods: the 2011 national survey, 43 State surveys, and 21 large urban school district surveys conducted among students in grades 9-12. Implications for policy and research are discussed. References, figure, and tables