Survey Finds High Risk Behaviors Among Suburban Cook County Teens

Results from a survey released last week show that suburban Cook County teens are engaging in high risk behaviors and unhealthy choices.

The Cook County Department of Public Health reported Thursday that 40 percent of suburban public high school students say they have tried cigarettes, 13 percent have seriously considered attempting suicide and 7 percent claimed to have been raped.

Information was gathered in suburban Cook County last fall as part of the first ever Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey. The study, which was done in collaboration with Children's Memorial Hospital's Child Health Data Lab, was part of a nationwide effort by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to evaluate teen behavior.

The voluntary, 91-item survey was administered to 1,718 students in 20 public high schools. The questionnaire covered six categories: behaviors that result in violence, tobacco use, alcohol and other drug use, sexual behaviors, dietary behaviors and physical activity.

“This data provides school administrators, public health officials, legislators and parents with the evidence needed to make targeted changes in youth programming and future intervention services focused on health behaviors in suburban Cook County,” CCDPH chief operating officer, Stephen A. Martin, Jr. said in a news release.

The Department of Public Health hopes the surveys can be used to pinpoint problems among teens and address specific areas where more education could diminish risks, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

“Most schools don’t have comprehensive sex education and are teaching abstinence only, but clearly we have a high amount of students who are engaging in sexual activity,” Amy Poore, a spokeswoman for the Cook County Department of Public Health, told the Sun-Times.

By the Numbers: Suburban Cook County Teens

Sexual Behaviors

• 37 percent have had sex
• 26 percent have had sex in the past three month
• Of those who had sex during the past three months, 62 percent used a condom

Physical Activity and Nutrition

• 26 percent are overweight or obese
• 75 percent were not physically active for 60 minutes every day
• 80 percent do not eat the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables

Alcohol and Drug Use

• 63 percent had at least one drink of alcohol
• 33 percent have used marijuana at least once
• 5 percent have used cocaine at least once

Bullying

• 30 percent have been in a physical fight in the past year
• 16 percent have been bullied on school property in the past year
• 14 percent have been electronically bullied