U.S. adults continue to rate obesity as the
biggest health problem for children, according to a 2009 poll conducted
by C.S. Mott Children's Hospital.
Although
childhood obesity
ranked
No. 1 last year also, this is the first year it ranked at the top for
whites, Hispanics, and African-Americans. Last year, Hispanics rated
smoking as the top child health concern and African-Americans ranked
teenage
pregnancy.
Stress, which came in at No. 8, made the top 10
list for the first time this year. It ranked especially high among
lower-income participants, perhaps reflecting the stresses that children
face as their parents struggle in the current
economy.
The complete list of
children's health concerns rated as a "big problem:"
1. Childhood obesity2. Drug abuse3. Smoking/tobacco use4. Bullying5. Internet safety6. Child abuse
and neglect7.
Alcohol abuse8. Stress9. Not enough opportunities for
physical activity10. Teen pregnancy
The
fact that stress -- and many other problems on the list -- are
behavioral or psychological in nature means that families need more than
just good health care; they also need “guidance from community health
and educational programs that cultivate
healthy, protective behaviors and offer support when health
problemsarise,” poll director Matthew Davis, MD, says in a written
statement. Davis is an associate professor of general pediatrics and
internal medicine at the University of Michigan Medical
School and an associate professor of public policy at the University of
Michigan Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.
The nationally
representative survey was conducted in May 2009 and included 2,017
randomly selected adults 18 or older. Participants
were asked to rank 23 different health concerns facing children in
their communities. The margin of error is plus or minus three to four
percentage points.