Steps to a Healthier Cleveland releases new data about chronic disease in Cleveland

Cleveland, OH – Steps to a Healthier Cleveland, a program of the Cleveland Department of Public Health, has released new data about how chronic diseases—diabetes, asthma and obesity—impact Cleveland adults and youth.   Data also include information about various behaviors that are known risk factors for these diseases, such as tobacco use, lack of physical activity and poor nutrition.

“We know a lot about how chronic diseases are impacting people across the United States, but this is our first glimpse at how illnesses like diabetes, asthma and obesity are specifically affecting the lives of Clevelanders,” explained Matt Carroll, Director of the Cleveland Department of Public Health.  “This information will help us design more effective interventions and allow us to track our progress in preventing and managing these diseases.”

Data were collected via 2005 and 2006 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Surveys (BRFSS) and the 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Surveys (YRBS), in partnership with the Case Western Reserve University and its Center for Health Promotion Research and Center for Adolescent Health.  Highlights from the newly released data include:

• DIABETES:  More Clevelanders report having Type II diabetes than adults in Ohio or the United States (10.8%, 6.7%, 7.5%, respectively).  However, adults with diabetes in Cleveland report better management of their disease in comparison to diabetic adults across the nation.  For example, Clevelanders are better at daily glucose self-monitoring and receiving annual foot and eye exams.

• OBESITY: 68% of adult Clevelanders are overweight (34%) or obese (34%).   Obese adults are more likely to be female, older, African-American and less affluent.  75% of obese Clevelanders report that they are actively trying to lose weight, many by using a dual strategy of diet and exercise; however, obese adults report less moderate or vigorous exercise than non-obese adults (40% vs. 52%).

• ACCESS TO HEALTHY FOODS: While 61% of youth reported that they have ready access to junk food at school, 65% also reported that they have access to fresh fruits and vegetables when they want them.

• “SCREEN TIME”:  63% of Cleveland adults and 67% of youth report that they spend 3 or more hours a day in front of a computer or television screen. 

• SMOKING--YOUTH: While Cleveland youth are less likely to smoke cigarettes than peers across the nation (11% vs. 23%), nearly 30% of youth report smoking little cigars.

• SMOKING—ADULTS: Over 50% of Cleveland adults smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their lifetime, and 31% continue to smoke.  However, 63% of adult cigarette smokers in Cleveland made at least one attempt to quit in the past year.

• SUPPORT FOR HEALTHY LIFESTYLE:  While 55% of adults feel supported by their community to be healthy, many more (67%) feel especially supported by their workplace to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Full data briefs with additional statistics and analysis are available here or by request.

Steps to a Healthier Cleveland is a city-wide program designed to engage all Clevelanders to live longer, better and healthier lives.  The Steps to a Healthier Cleveland program encourages physical activity, healthy eating and tobacco-free choices. These efforts are intended to reduce the burden of diabetes, overweight/obesity and asthma in all of Cleveland’s diverse neighborhoods.
  
For more information about Steps to a Healthier Cleveland, contact Summer Paris at (216) 664-3076 or (216) 857-5760. 

About Steps to a Healthier Cleveland:
Steps to a Healthier Cleveland is funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as part of Steps to a HealthierUS, a national program focusing on the prevention of diabetes, obesity, and asthma and addressing related risk factors—poor nutrition, physical inactivity, and tobacco use and exposure.  For more information about Steps to a Healthier Cleveland, please visit  www.clevelandhealth.org/steps or call 216-664-STEP (7837).

About Steps to a HealthierUS Cooperative Agreement:
Steps to a HealthierUS Cooperative Agreement is a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services program advancing the HealthierUS goal to help Americans live longer, better, and healthier lives.  Through funding of community-based interventions, this program aims to reduce the burden of diabetes, obesity, and asthma, and address three related risk behaviors—poor nutrition, physical inactivity, and tobacco use and exposure.  For more information, please visit  www.cdc.gov/steps .

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