Hispanic Teen Health At Risk, Study Shows

Drug Use, Suicide Attempts By Hispanic High School Students Continue To Rise

(AP)  Hispanic high school students use drugs and attempt suicide at higher rates than their black and white classmates, according to a new federal survey that shows a continuation of a disturbing trend.

The study is the latest in a series of surveys of U.S. high school students every two years. The new report noted that black and white students are reporting less sexual activity than in years past, but there was no decline among Hispanics.

In addition, Hispanic students were more likely than either blacks or whites to attempt suicide, ride with a driver who had been drinking alcohol, or use cocaine, heroin or ecstasy.

Hispanics also most often drank alcohol on school property, were offered or sold illegal drugs, and occasionally skipped school because they feared for their safety, according to the 2007 survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Experts were unable to come up with an explanation for why Hispanic behavior trends differed. However, they speculated that school environments many Hispanics face may differ considerably from what adolescents of other races encounter. Earlier research found that Hispanics and blacks more commonly attend highly segregated schools than whites or Asians.

"There's tremendous segregation in our schools," said Howell Wechsler, director of adolescent and school health for the CDC. He said he was "very troubled" Hispanic teens had not improved in certain risk areas at the same rate as blacks and whites.

The finding comes from a survey of about 14,000 U.S. high school students that has been conducted every other year since 1991.

Questionnaires go to students in grades 9-12 in public and private high schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Researchers got parental permission for each student who participated.

The survey did not collect information on the parents' income or education levels. Some experts say those factors also can be a strong indicator of a youth's health behavior and academic achievement.

Adolescents cannot always be counted on to tell the truth about their sexual exploits, drug use, or other risky behaviors. But CDC officials say they take many steps to secure accurate responses: Participation is confidential, kids are spaced apart when answering the questions and teachers do not hover.

The survey asks about a wide variety of behaviors, including sunscreen use, seatbelt avoidance, drug use and suicide attempts. Among other findings, the study noted the proportion of kids who said they recently smoked a cigarette was the same as the proportion who recently used marijuana - 20 percent.

Like the 2005 survey, the 2007 data showed higher rates of risk-taking by Hispanics in several areas.

One example: About 10 to 11 percent of Hispanic students said they attempted suicide, compared with around 7 percent of whites and 8 percent of blacks.

However, whites reported the highest rates of smoking and heavy drinking, while blacks reported the highest rates of obesity, violence and sexual activity.

One striking behavior in which blacks fared the worst was television watching.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no more than two hours of daily TV viewing a day for kids. Physical activity is needed to develop mental and social skills and help prevent obesity, and TV violence has been associated with more aggressive behavior in children who watch a lot of it.

Overall, TV watching by high school students has been generally steady, with about 35 percent watching three or more hours a day.

But the new report shows that about 63 percent of black students watch three or more hours a day. In contrast, 43 percent of Hispanic students and 27 percent of whites watched too much TV, the report concluded.

"We don't see that kind of gap" in virtually any other measurement of risky health behaviors, Wechsler said in the interview.

The survey also found that more blacks use computers for non-school activities - like video games - than whites or Hispanics.

The study's findings may indicate that black children have fewer sporting events, social clubs or other after-school options than whites or Hispanics, said Ralph DiClemente, an Emory University researcher who has studied adolescent health and media exposure.

SO WHAT

[zwe453]

DOWN WITH AMERIKKKA! UP WITH MEXICO! GIVE US BACK CALIFORNIA AND TEXAS! AMERIKKKA SUCKS!

[zwe453]

GREENGOS SUCK! VIVA MEXICO!

[zwe453]

THE AMERIKKKAN FLAG SUCKS! VIVA MEXICO!

[zwe453]

GIVE US BACK CALIFORNIA AND TEXAS! DOWN WITH AMERIKKKA! UP WITH MEXICO!

[zwe453]

I WILL NEVER FLY THE AMERIKKKAN FLAG! I LOVE MEXICO! DOWN WITH AMERIKKKA!

[zwe453]

DOWN WITH AMERIKKKA! UP WITH MEXICO!

[zwe453]

DOWN WITH AMERIKKKA! VIVA MEXICO! ALL OF US SHOULD FLY THE AMERIKKKAN FLAG AND THE CONFEDERATE FLAG UPSIDE DOWN!

[joan1v]

Please go back to Mexico. We have enough problems without you people coming here illegally, have your own government take care of your problems. Leave our country. We are not the caretakers of the entire world. You have your culture and we we have ours.

[dynonite]

Every American who cares about the well being of our country should go to bordermovie.com to fing out what the main stream media refuses to acknowledge about immigration. We are truly in a crisis.

[formrusmcsgt]

The sad thing is over 80% of these very kids are anchor kids.

Posted by frankbowers at 04:37 PM : Jun 05, 2008

You have a credible source fot that or is it simply YOUR number?

[frankbowers]

The sad thing is over 80% of these very kids are anchor kids. Their parents stole into our country and have bveen raiding our hospitqals, schools, tax benefits, in which they have never paid any thing into, The list goes on and on. The parents are illegal aliens and do not understand how things are done in this country and most of them speak little or no lEnglish as they do not wish to become Americans to the point of giving up their great countries in which they left due to the govenment not caring enough about them to help them and have slipped or stole their way into our country and stole what ever they need in Sanctuary cities across our nation, such as Houston, Tx; nyc,ny; the atate of new jersey, Illinois, CALIFORNIA FLORIDA, THE LIST IS LONG, the due to the politicians who have no desire to do what is right and ship them out. Frank Bowers

[krotec54]

They must realize that they do not have much of a future since they do not want to learn English or about this country that their parents disrespected its laws by illegally entering and then demanding for citizenship that they are not entitle to.
The illegal immigrants future will be in Agriculture, cattle / goat herder, construction worker, motels and restaurants servers. The Muslim immigrants will have the same problem segregating their selves from the rest of America. They will not advance much in the real world and we should just let them commit suicide to allow the legal immigrants that can assimilate and handle America%u2019s way of life to be productive citizens.

[mandylou4u]

again, I am not saying I don''t like the hispanic community and I''m not trying to be mean, but I had lost control of my car one day, there was fresh oil on the road and no warning. A car load of Mexican workers slammed into my car while I sat dazed and confused in the middle of the road. When I got my barrings, I asked them if they insurance or license. They all acted like they didn''t know what I was saying, but as soon as the words lawyer and sue you came up, oh they new English real well. This is what I don''t like about people migrating here. Don''t act stupid to get out of a mistake you made. They had no problem speaking English to the cops when they got there either.

[rf35]

The prime driver in the high risk rates in Hispanics is their self-segregation and refusal to integrate into American life. I have no problem with people respecting the traditions of their culture (so long as it doesn''t involve human sacrifice or anything like that), but Hispanics need to learn and use English. I am tired of using sign language to get the housekeeping staff to figure out what I need in my room. Hispanics are segregated because they are segregating themselves. This causes the rest of American society to shun them on the occasions when they do want to join the rest of us. It makes it hard for the few who DO try to integrate because both sides of the issue refuse to accept them. The Hispanic rank and file is PO%u2019ed because they feel these people have somehow betrayed them and society in general judges them based on experience with the majority of non-conformist Hispanics. Unfortunately, Hispanic segregation has become a self-feeding cycle. I doubt it will be broken anytime soon.

[jboxton]

Maybe they come to our country and realize you have to do more than sleep. They think they can come here and automatically get rich without trying.

[sistatee-2009]

Instead of lowering the Hispanic suicide rate, wouldn''t it be easier to raise the white and black suicide rates to make it equal.

[mandylou4u]

this is not a simple issue, I just explain things in the most simple way I can to get my point across. Kudos to you for having dual citizenship, at least you are trying to blend with the area you have moved to. My grandparents were imigrants from Germany. They came here, got legal, got jobs and learned the culture here. They lived wonderfull, productive lives and because of them I am having a better life too, so the imigration thing doesn''t bother me. By the parents not wanting to fit in, it makes it harder on the kids in the end and the kids are the ones who actually have to grow up here.

[mandylou4u]

I want to say this too. I do not hate the hispanic community, they just have little respect when it comes to us taking care of them after they have come over illegaly. The least you could do is respect the people letting you stay here and giving you their assistance.

[mandylou4u]

the issue being discussed is drug use and their inability to blend in with people of another culture. It would be pretty hard for you to fit in somewhere where you didn''t know the language or culture wouldn''t it? The segregation is there because they choose not to fit in with the culture. They want to still live like they are in their homeland, which is different from ours.