The Delaware Governor's Council on Lifestyle and Fitness has issued a "2005 Report Card on Lifestyle and Fitness." The report was issued at a physical activity conference in Dover on May 10, 2006.

The report focuses on six health behaviors which are addressed by the GCLF, and serves as a mid-decade progress report on several objectives from the Healthy Delaware 2010 plan. Health risks covered in the report include tobacco use, obesity, physical activity, healthy eating, safety belt use, and alcohol abuse.

Significant progress was noted in two areas:  Tobacco Use and Safety Belt Use. The report states that, "Since the start of Delaware's Tobacco Prevention and Control Program, there has been a 22% decrease in adult smoking prevalence. Youth Data presents an even more hopeful picture. Smoking among Delaware high school students declined from 35% in 1997 to 23.5% in 2003 – a 32% decrease. Cigarette smoking is now the lowest it's been in Delaware since the state began collecting data on smoking in 1982.

Safety belt use by Delaware drivers is high, with 82.3% reporting they always use their safety belts. Passage of the primary seat belt law in 2003 helped push usage above the national rate. An additional 6.2% say they "almost always" use their safety belts.

However, the report indicates little or no progress has been made to date in improving eating habits, reducing the prevalence of obesity, or increasing the prevalence of moderate or vigorous physical activity. Several efforts are under way to address these risk factors, including the Division of Public Health's "Get Up and Do Something" campaign, the Lt. Governor's Challenge, Walk Delaware, efforts of the General Assembly's Physical Education Task Force, and the Nemours Health and Prevention Services' 5-2-1-Almost None campaign.

Data used in the report were provided by the Delaware Behavioral Risk Factor Survey (BRFS), which is conducted for the Division of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), by the University of Delaware Center for Applied Demography and Survey Research. Additional data on youth came from the Department of Education's Youth Risk Behavior Survey.

The complete report is available in PDF format or as a text file:

• GCLF "2005 Report Card on Lifestyle and Fitness"
• The Text File of the Report

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