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August 1, 2006
Little Rock -- What percentage of Arkansans smoke? Are men or women more likely to report their health to be poor? How healthy is your county compared to the state overall? This information and more about the health of Arkansans is now available on the Arkansas Center for Health Statistics Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) website at http://www.brfss.arkansas.gov/.
The BRFSS is a standardized, random telephone health survey of adults 18 and older conducted by each of the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and three U.S. territories under the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The BRFSS began in the 1980s after research showed that personal health behaviors play an important role in the existence of unnecessary deaths and illnesses. The survey allows individual states to collect information on personal behaviors (such as smoking, drinking, not getting exercise, being overweight, not getting preventive medical care, and not using seatbelts) that are linked to the leading causes of death (heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, injury) and other important health issues. This information is used in a number of ways by different states.
The Arkansas Center for Health Statistics has been conducting a state-level monthly BRFSS survey continuously since 1993 and currently completes over 400 telephone interviews per month. The Center also conducts adult county-level surveys sponsored by local Hometown Health Coalitions.
For more information on the Arkansas BRFSS survey, go to http://www.brfss.arkansas.gov/ or contact LaTonya Steward, Arkansas BRFSS Coordinator by email latonya.steward@arkansas.gov or call 501-661-2003.
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