Background: Involvement in interpersonal violence or suicidal behaviors can have a significant impact on an adolescent's physical health. Similarly, previous research has suggested that lived experiences, more than the presence or absence of physical ailments, can significantly influence self-assessed health status among adolescents. The purpose…

Although fathers play a key role in helping their children develop ideas about gender relations and close relationships, they have been largely overlooked as a resource to help prevent violence against women. This paper explores some of the reasons why fathers have not been successfully engaged in violence prevention. Engaging fathers to promote…

Objectives: To describe smoking and quitting history among multiethnic adolescent smokers and examine these as correlates of readiness to quit. Methods: Data were analyzed from 121 high school smokers. Sociodemographic characteristics, self-reported smoking history, number and duration of recent quit attempts, attitudes toward smoking/quitting,…

The purpose of this study was to determine the utilization pattern of an elementary school-based clinic over a 5-year period. It involved a retrospective analysis of computer-based data for all patient visits during this study period. Results revealed high clinic utilization with an average of over 5 encounters for all users each year. The most…

Purpose: The proposed dementia precursor state of mild cognitive impairment is emerging as a primary target of aging research. Yet, little is known about the subjective experience of living with a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment. This study examines, from the patient's perspective, the experience of living with and making sense of the…

This brief discusses the signs and symptoms of alcohol and drug use and provides recommendations to assess substance use among youth in your program. It is not uncommon for adolescents to experiment with different substances such as alcohol or cigarettes, but this can lead to heavy and continued use, which is dangerous and may put their health at…

The prevalence of 3 mental disorders (Depressive Disorder, Conduct Disorder and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder), the prevalence of mental health problems, and rates of health-risk behaviours among those with problems, along with patterns of service utilisation, are reported for 1490 adolescents aged 13-17 years in Australia. Mental…

This study examined the prevalence of selected clinical preventive health services, health status indicators, health risk behaviors, and health-promoting behaviors among adults aged 18 to 24 years in the general U.S. population. The study analyzed data from the 2003 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Nearly 30% of young adults lacked…

In the United States, more than 70 percent of all deaths among youth and young adults each year are related to four causes: motor vehicle crashes, other unintentional injuries, homicide, and suicide. Alcohol misuse and abuse contribute to each of these behaviors. Alcohol is the most frequently consumed mind-altering substance among…

Limited evidence exists concerning the health of young adults, most likely attributable to the fact that young adults perceive themselves to be insusceptible to infirmity. This lack of information extends into higher education sectors, places that have venues for dispensing health information/education to many young adults. What is important to…

Increasingly sedentary lifestyles are contributing to overweight and other health concerns as children spend less and less time outside engaged in active play. Outdoor play provides important opportunities to explore the natural world, interact with peers, engage in vigorous physical activity, and learn about our environment. However, outdoor…

African-American adolescents have lower rates of alcohol consumption than White youth. However, African-American youth suffer disproportionately more adverse social, mental, and physical health outcomes related to alcohol use. Affiliating with negative peers is a risk factor for alcohol initiation and consumption. Cultural variables have shown…

Background: Health is recognized as an important factor in children's educational achievement, and school-based health education programs are recognized for their potential long-term impact. However, the extent to which children conceptualize health similarly as adults, and the nature of their understandings of health, remain cloudy. Purpose:…

Health-related habits develop early in life. The period during junior high school is especially important for developing these habits. Because adolescent behaviors may be better predictors of adult disease than adult health behaviors, interventions with children and adolescents are important. Several theories and models for explaining how people…

Education can be regarded as an intervention, a treatment, and a potential positive influence on the health of an accessible group of children and youth ages 3-18. Education can have a positive effect upon health by modifying prominent behaviors established during youth that result in preventable morbidity and mortality during both youth and…