Category: Health Status

Ask the Expert: Dr. Kirsten Herrick

Dr. Kirsten Herrick

The NHANES National Youth Fitness Survey (NNYFS) was developed as a model of comprehensive, youth-targeted fitness and nutrition data collection. As a standalone survey conducted alongside the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), NNYFS collected data on exercise and nutrition habits of U.S. children aged 3 to 15, through interviews and fitness tests conducted in a Read More >

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The Birth Certificate (Finally) Goes National

Joyce Martin, M.P.H.

According to Joyce Martin, M.P.H., lead of the birth team in the Reproductive Statistics Branch, Division of Vital Statistics, a transition that began more than a decade-and-a-half ago will soon be completed, and a new era in national birth certificate data will begin. By the time we ring in 2015, all of America’s 50 states and Read More >

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Director’s Corner—NCHS and Public Health

Charles Rothwell, NCHS Director

Monday, April 7, marks the beginning of National Public Health Week. For the past 20 years, the American Public Health Association has observed National Public Health Week as a time to recognize the contributions of public health and highlight issues that are important to improving our nation’s health. This makes it a good time reflect Read More >

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News Brief: Teen Pregnancy, and Sedentary Time and Disability

Red leather armchair

Data collected through NCHS’ National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) and National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were used as the foundation for two important studies released this year that have attracted significant national media attention.   Teen Pregnancy and MTV In January, the National Bureau of Economic Research released its paper, “Media Influences on Read More >

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Ask the Expert: Dr. Julia Holmes, Health, United States

Dr. Julia Holmes

Since 1975, Health, United States has presented national trends on the health of the Nation, including infant mortality, life expectancy, morbidity and health status, risk factors such as smoking and obesity, utilization of health care, health insurance coverage, supply of health care resources, and national expenditures for health. Compiled annually by the National Center for Read More >

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NHANES’ MEC Collects Health Data

Faye McDonald Smith The Mobile Exam Center (MEC) is an important part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which, since 1999, is conducted annually to assess the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States. NHANES conducts interviews at the home and exams at the MEC. These data Read More >

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Director’s Corner: The Value of Collaborations

Ed Sondik, NCHS Director

One of the more gratifying aspects of working at NCHS is the extraordinary opportunity to collaborate with researchers across the government. This is well illustrated by the release of two important reports. The first is America’s Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2012. As I say in the press release, the findings in Read More >

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New Survey Measures the Fitness of America’s Youth

Physical Activity

The NHANES National Youth Fitness Survey (NYFS), conducted as a separate survey alongside the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), is receiving an enthusiastic response from its young participants. For the NYFS team in the Division of Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys, attaining good response rates is critical to the program’s success. The NYFS, funded Read More >

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New Interactive Report

interactive health united states

Interactive Health, United States, 2011, In Brief, is a new interactive version of Health, United States, 2011, In Brief . It was developed jointly with the National Library of Medicine (NLM) of the National Institutes of Health. The new interactive report provides text, charts, and tables from Health, United States, 2011. Additional data from the full Health, Read More >

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Ask the Expert: Dr. David Huang

Dr. David Huang

[Editor’s note: NCHS is responsible for monitoring and analyzing data for the HHS Healthy People program. In addition, about one-third of the program’s objectives use NCHS-collected data. We spoke with Dr. David Huang of the Office of Analysis and Epidemiology (OAE) about the Healthy People program.]   Q. Healthy People 2010: Final Review comes out Read More >

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In the News

The New York Times Looks at Children and Sugar The New York Times highlighted the work of senior epidemiologist Dr. Cynthia L. Ogden and her team in their coverage of children and sugar consumption. The March 19 article, “Added Sugars Pile Up on Children’s Plates,” covers data and findings from Data Brief 87, Consumption of Read More >

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