This study assessed the use of complementary and alternative medicine among college students (N=913), the relationships between health locus of control with use of complementary and alternative medicine, and health local of control with attitudes toward complementary and alternative medicine and what predicts their use. A majority (66%, n-913) of…

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a gambling prevention program that aimed to correct the notions of chance and randomness among primary school students. The relative effectiveness of two prevention programs aiming to modify erroneous perceptions of gambling as well as the teacher's and specialist's on the psychology of gambling…

Since the declaration of the eradication of smallpox in May of 1980 concern about this virus has ebbed. However, recent world events, including the destabilization of governments, have raised concerns that smallpox could fall into the hands of nefarious individuals or groups who might attempt to use the virus as a weapon. In Centers for Disease…

The epidemiology of unintentional injury and violence, including likely causes and individuals' abilities to respond to risks, are closely related to the stages of human development. The epidemiology and prevention of injury are also influenced by the social contexts (i.e., family, community, and socio-cultural) in which human development occurs.…

Academic achievement and high test scores are not the only indicators of a successful school. A good school is also a safe school. Unfortunately, every year in the United States, approximately 3.7 million students suffer an injury at school severe enough to require medical attention or to limit activity. Most of the injuries are preventable. Data…

Approximately two-thirds of all deaths among children and adolescents aged five to 19 years results from injury-related causes: motor-vehicle crashes, all other unintentional injuries, homicide, and suicide. Schools have a responsibility to prevent injuries from occurring on school property and at school-sponsored events. In addition, schools can…

Bullying among children and youth has received considerable recent attention by educators, policy makers, health and mental health professionals, the media, and the general public. Recent legislation pertaining to bullying is reviewed, and current school-based bullying prevention and intervention strategies are described and critiqued. A number of…

Paid employment is an important feature of adolescent life. Too often, it has negative health consequences, including more than 200,000 workplace injuries to 14 to 17 year olds every year. Training teens about occupational safety is part of an overall strategy to address this problem. When the project described in this article began, there were…

Suicide is a leading cause of death among youth, and schools have an important role to play in preventing suicide. Schools are the center of many adolescents' lives and they can influence students' personal and social development. Therefore, it is appropriate that the first line of suicide prevention strategies should lie within the educational…

Few pedestrian injury prevention programs appear to articulate the theory upon which their design and evaluation are based. This article describes how theory was used to plan, develop, implement, and evaluate the educational component of a comprehensive child pedestrian intervention. Organizational and planning theories were used to guide the…

This study describes the support of parents and other community members for child pedestrian safety measures, their willingness to pay in terms of volunteer time and money for efforts to make child pedestrian safety improvements in their neighborhood, and their views on how to affect child pedestrian safety improvements in their communities. In…

Motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) are the leading cause of injury and death among adolescents 16 to 19 years of age. Three areas of countermeasures for decreasing young driver risk are driver education, licensing policies, and parental management. Driver education is an essential part of teaching adolescents the rules of the road and operating a…

Access to injury prevention information is being transformed by the Internet and information technology. These new strategies for "knowledge management" are creating new opportunities for health education and injury prevention. This article provides an overview and a list of internet resources on unintentional injury prevention, acute care and…

This article presents the text of an address delivered by Robert F. Valois at the Annual National Meeting of the American Association for Health Education, American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation & Dance in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on April 4, 2003. Valois discusses the changes in the "American village" as they relate to…

The economic cost for the United States from heart disease, diabetes, and cancer is estimated at $71 billion annually. Along with this trend, the prevalence of obesity in the United States has reached epidemic proportions. To date, all interventions related to the prevention and treatment of obesity have failed. We must find a new way to prevent…