The Health of California’s Adults, Adolescents and Children: Findings from CHIS 2005 and 2003

September 29^th, 2008

The Health of California's Adults, Adolescents and Children: Findings from CHIS 2005 and 2003 has been published by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

 

This report examines the results of the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) for the years 2003 and 2005 for across the state of California.  The CHIS reports on key indicators of health status, health behavior and access to healthcare.  Some of the topics include: diabetes, obesity, heart disease, cancer, consumption of fruits and vegetables, consumption of fast food , average number of days walked, biked to school for children, time spent watching T.V., source of regular health care, incidence of prescription drug usages, and many others.  Many indicators are examined across age, race/ethnicity, gender and income levels (from below federal poverty level, to 3 times above the federal poverty level.).  In addition, comparisons are presented for the years 2003 and 2005.

 

Selected Findings:

 

• The probability that an adult in poverty over age 18 is to be diagnosed in their lifetime with diabetes in California is twice that of an adult at more than 3 times the federal poverty level (pg. 9).
• In 2005, 11% of women in California reported binge drinking (pg. 23).
• Out of all ethnic/national groups in California, Korean women were least likely in 2005 to get a mammogram (57% receiving mammograms) compared to the group most likely to get one, African-Americans (a rate of 81%) (pg. 29).
• About 86.4% of California adults have a regular source of medical care; foreign born Central American adults had the lowest incidents of regular medical care (74%) compared to Whites (90% have a regular source of medical care) (pg. 35).