PHMC’s Community Health Data Base (CHDB) 2010 Household Health Survey took a comprehensive look at the health of children birth to age 17 in Southeastern Pennsylvania (SEPA). Among other topics, CHDB included questions about childhood asthma and children who are overweight or at risk of being overweight. For the first time, CHDB added new questions about nutrition in Philadelphia County. Survey data show that, while children are typically in better health than adults, in SEPA many children either suffer from a chronic disease or are at risk for a chronic disease such as asthma or diabetes.

Childhood Asthma

Asthma remains one of the most common chronic illnesses among children and adolescents. Children with asthma may experience more absences from school, learning difficulties and hospital stays. Nationwide, 13.8% of children suffer from asthma*. However, in the five-county SEPA region 18.5% of children—representing more than 175,400 children—suffer from asthma. The percentage of children diagnosed with asthma has increased over the past 10 years. Nearly a quarter of children residing in Philadelphia County (23.3%) have asthma, followed by children living in Delaware (20.7%), Montgomery (15.4%), Chester (14.0%) and Bucks (11.9%) Counties. And 20.5% of children in the SEPA area with asthma live with a smoker who smokes inside the home, a known trigger factor for an asthmatic episode.

Demographic Characteristics of Childhood Asthma in SEPA

  • Boys are more likely to have asthma than girls (21.8% vs. 15.1%, respectively).
  • More black (27.9%) and Latino (21%) children have asthma compared with Asian (16.5%) and white (14.0%) children.
  • Nearly one-third of low-income children (31.6%, representing more than 50,700 children) have asthma compared with 15.9% of children from non-low income families.

Children and Healthy Weight

Studies have shown that children who are overweight when they are younger become prone to obesity as adults, putting them at risk for a number of chronic conditions, such as coronary heart disease and diabetes. Nationwide, 17% of children age 6 and older are at or above the 95th percentile for body mass index and are therefore considered obese**. Regionally, nearly one in five children (19.2%) are considered obese, and another 15.6% are between the 85th and 84th percentiles, thus considered overweight. Combined, approximately 201,500 children in SEPA, or 34.8%, are overweight or obese. Philadelphia County has the largest percentage of children who are overweight or at risk for being overweight (40.7%), followed by Delaware (37.1%), Bucks (35.8%), Montgomery (30.4%) and Chester (28%) Counties.

Demographic Characteristics

  • The percentage of boys (15.8%) and girls (15.3%) who are overweight is comparable, however more boys than girls are considered obese (22.3%, compared with 15.9%)
  • Children in SEPA living below the federal poverty line*** are twice as likely to be obese as those living above the line (34.4% and 16.5%, respectively).
  • More than half of Latino children (53.9%) are overweight or at risk for being overweight, compared with black (48.4%), white (27.7%) and Asian (16.5%) children.

Nutrition in Philadelphia County

Sugary beverages play a major factor in the childhood obesity epidemic. This year, for the first time, CHDB added questions to the Household Health Survey regarding children’s consumption of sugary beverages. Findings showed that three-quarters of children under age 17 in Philadelphia (74.8%) drink sugary beverages, including sodas, juices, teas and fruit drinks. More than two in five children in SEPA (42.1%) consume sugary beverages, at least once per day. This represents approximately 156,700 children in SEPA. More than half of children living below the federal poverty line (52.2%) consume these beverages at least daily, as do more than one-third of children living above the federal poverty line (37.5%).

Additionally, survey results show that half of children ages three to 17 in Philadelphia (50.6%) eat less than three servings of fruits or vegetables each day, which represents approximately 147,600 children. Boys are more likely to fall into this category than girls, with 55.7% of boys and 44.3% of girls in Philadelphia eating less than three servings of produce each day.

For more information about PHMC's Community Health Data Base 2010 Household Health Survey, contact Rose Malinowski Weingartner at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

 

*National Health Interview Survey, 2008

**National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2007-2008

***Poverty level is defined as below or above 100% of the federal poverty line. Poverty level is calculated based on family size and household income. For example, a family of four with an annual income of $22,050 in 2010 was considered to be living in poverty.