The Tennessee Department of Education's office of coordinated school health (CSH) works with every school district in the state to address all aspects of student health, with a special emphasis on reducing Tennessee's childhood obesity rates. Encouraging adequate physical activity and providing physical education for all students are the central…

To assess the prevalence of weight misperception in American adolescents and its association with diet and physical activity behaviors, "Youth Risk Behavior Survey" data were utilized for this study. Based on reported and perceived weight, adolescents in the study were grouped into four categories (true negative [52.4%] = normal body…

Montana is proud to have completed over three decades of participation in the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS). These results are valuable to educators, school boards, and communities, including parents and students, in understanding the health risks of Montana students, enabling districts to design local health and physical education curriculum…

Effective evidence-based action requires getting the right data into the right hands at the right time to help make decisions. The Data Quality Campaign (2011) has provided suggestions to state education agencies for effectively using data within state longitudinal data systems. One suggestion is to identify "the variety of ways available…

Background: This study examined the prevalence of oral sexual activity in rural Midwestern adolescents. We also examined the correlates of a series of risk behaviors with oral sexual activity. Methods: A questionnaire based on the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System was distributed to 2121 rural middle and high school students in grades 6-12…

Problem: Priority health-risk behaviors, which are behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among youth and adults, often are established during childhood and adolescence, extend into adulthood, are interrelated, and are preventable. Reporting Period Covered: January-December 2007. Description of the System: The…

The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Systems monitor six categories of priority health risk behaviors among youth and young adults: (1) behaviors that contribute to intentional or unintentional injuries; (2) tobacco use (3) alcohol and other drug use; (4) sexual behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases;…

The study examined associations among physical activity, cigarette smoking, body mass index, perceptions of body weight, weight-management goals, and weight-management behaviors of public high school adolescents. The CDC Youth Risk Behavior Survey provided a cross-sectional sample (n = 3,089) of public high school students in South Carolina.…