PEDIATRICS Vol. 89 No. 3 March 1992, pp. 422-428
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Health-Risk Behaviors and Health Concerns Among Young Adolescents

Susan G. Millstein PhD1, Charles E. Irwin Jr MD1, Nancy E. Adler PhD2, Laurence D. Cohn PhD3, Susan M. Kegeles PhD4, and M. Margaret Dolcini PhD4

1 From the Department of Pediatrics, University of Califoria, San Francisco
2 From the Departments of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, University of Califoria, San Francisco
3 From the Departmentn of Psychology, University of Texas, El Paso.
4 From the Department of Medicine, and Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, University of Califoria, San Francisco

This study examined the health concerns and behaviors of 563 adolescents (aged 11 through 14) from a variety of social, racial, and ethnic backgrounds. Behaviors associated with adolescent morbidity and mortality were examined, including sexual behavior, substance use, and injury-related behaviors. Although young adolescents are often viewed as unlikely participants in these risk behaviors, the results of this study suggest that greater attention should be paid to this younger group and their health-risk behaviors. A majority of the sample had tried alcohol and tobacco, and almost a third had used marijuana. Twenty-one percent were sexually active. Prevalence rates varied by social class, race-ethnicity, gender, and age. More than 75% of the sample had visited a physician during the prior year, suggesting an important role physicians may serve as sources of information and positive role models for these young adolescents. The results suggest that we stop viewing young adolescents as naive children and begin to view them as observers of and participants in a changing social environment that has important implications for their current and future health status. Without a realistic appraisal of the young adolescent, we can expect to have little overall effect on the status of adolescent health in the United States.

Key Words: early adolescence • risk-taking behavior • sexual behavior • substance use • health behaviors

Submitted on December 10, 1990
Accepted on February 26, 1991




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