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Stratford Survey Says!
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Business New Haven
3/18/2002
By: Susan Cornell
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Twenty-eight percent of Stratford residents have high blood pressure, compared with twenty percent statewide, a survey by the town's Health Department shows. Additionally, sixty percent are overweight, compared with 54 percent statewide.
Last winter the Stratford Health Department surveyed 510 residents selected from a random list of telephone numbers. Respondents answered 77 questions on health topics ranging from alcohol and tobacco use to exercise, health insurance, nutrition, sun exposure, vaccinations, and a host of health-related issues.
The good news, according to the survey data, is that most Stratford residents have access to medical care and adequate health insurance. Respondents also reported some positive health behaviors. Some encouraging findings from the data are:
• 94 percent currently have health insurance.
• 82 percent have visited a physician for a routine checkup within the past 12 months.
• 75 percent have been examined by a dentist or dental hygienist within the past 12 months.
• 79 percent had no sunburns within the past 12 months.
• 75 percent always fasten their safety belts when traveling in an automobile.
Nonetheless, the data also revealed high rates of cardiovascular-disease risk factors. Cardiovascular disease, including stroke and heart attack, is the leading cause of death nationwide. Some of the discouraging findings from the survey data include:
• 60 percent of the survey population is overweight, compared with 54 percent statewide.
• 28 percent have high blood pressure, compared with 20 percent statewide.
• 24 percent smoke tobacco, compared with 20 percent statewide.
• Nine percent have diabetes, compared with six percent statewide.
• 49 percent eat one serving or less of vegetables per day and 59 percent eat one serving or less of fruit per day (the National Institutes of Health recommend five or more servings of fruits and vegetables daily).
• 52 percent exercise two or fewer times a week. 26.9 percent do not exercise on a weekly basis.
“This survey data provides very important information about Stratford residents that is not available from any other source. Local health data helps us to develop programs, services and policy initiatives that address the specific needs of our residents,” explains Health Director Elaine O'Keefe. “There are many policies and programs that the Health Department can devise to reduce tobacco use, high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, diabetes and [obesity] among Stratford residents.”
O'Keefe believes that the $15,000 the town spent (with help from a state grant) to conduct the survey is a sound investment.
“It is our role as public-health professionals to educate Stratford residents to lead healthier lifestyles,” she says. “If more residents exercised regularly and ate a low-fat diet rich in fruit and vegetables, cardiovascular disease and many forms of cancer would dramatically decline.
Adds O'Keefe, “We must also promote social conditions that support positive health outcomes through policy changes such as measures to increase access to affordable medical and dental care, pollution-reduction initiatives and better transportation systems to enable people to access needed services, nutritious foods and so on.”
Kathleen Brennan, who chairs the Stratford Health Advisory Council, expresses surprise that the survey results indicated that more Stratford residents have some types of health problems compared with statewide figures. She adds that her group will help plan weight control, exercise, nutrition, and smoke-free environment programs.
The data from the Stratford Health Department's health survey is available to the public. A four-page newsletter summarizing the most significant findings can be obtained by calling the department at 203-385-4090. The full 36-page report is available for review at the Stratford Public Library, the Stratford Health Department, and the town's Web site (www.townofstratford.com).
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