Health and Nutrition of Birch Creek, AK Residents

Diet Behavior & Nutrition

Forty six percent of Birch Creek residents report that their diet is generally healthy. People here have milk to drink or on their cereal 13 times per month. This includes chocolate and other flavored milks, as well as hot cocoa made with milk, and does not count small amounts of milk added to coffee or tea. People living here eat an average of five meals (breakfasts, lunches or dinners) per week that were prepared away from home in places such as restaurants, fast food places, food stands, grocery stores or from vending machines. They get two of these meals from a fast-food or pizza place. People here eat two "ready to eat" foods such as salads, soups, chicken, sandwiches and cooked vegetables per month. They also eat four frozen meals or frozen pizzas on average monthly.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Oral Health

The average Birch Creek resident last visited a dentist two years ago (including all types of dentists, such as, orthodontists, oral surgeons, and all other dental specialists, as well as dental hygienists). Twenty eight percent of people living here 30 years of age and older, are embarrassed because of their teeth, mouth or dentures. Nineteen percent think they might have gum disease (might have swollen gums, receding gums, sore or infected gums or loose teeth). Birch Creek residents rate the overall health of their teeth and gums on average at 43 percent. People living here aged 30 years and older, aside from brushing their teeth with toothbrush, use dental floss or any other device that clean between teeth on average three days per week. They also use mouthwash or other dental rinse products to treat dental disease or dental problems an average of four days per week. The average person living here (including children) has 24 teeth.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Weight

The average height of Birch Creek residents 16 years and older is 66 inches. The average weight is 165 pounds. Their average BMI (Body Mass Index) is 28. Thirty percent of people living here are obese. Forty four percent have ever been obese. Thirty one percent have ever tried to lose weight.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Drug Use

Sixty eight percent of Birch Creek residents have ever used marijuana or hashish. Thirty two percent of people living here have ever used cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin or methamphetamine. Thirty one percent have ever used any form of cocaine, such as powder, 'crack', 'free base', and coca paste. Thirty percent have ever used methamphetamines.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Diabetes

Ten percent of people living in Birch Creek have ever been told by a doctor or health professional that they have diabetes. Fifty percent of people had a blood test for high sugar or diabetes within the past three years.

Summary

Kidney Conditions-Urology

Birch Creek residents 20 years and older on average get up to urinate one time at night (from time they go to bed at night until the time they get up in the morning).

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Taste & Smell

Fifteen percent of Birch Creek residents above the age of 40 have problems with their ability to smell, such as not being able to smell things or things not smelling the way they are supposed to. Three percent have been having problems with their ability to taste sweet, sour, salty or bitter foods and drinks. Fifty percent of people above the age of 40 have ever had wisdom teeth removed. Thirteen percent have ever had their tonsils removed. Eleven percent have lost consciousness because of a head injury. Ten percent have ever had a broken nose or other serious injury to face or skull. Thirty seven percent have had two or more sinus infections.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Health Insurance

Sixty nine percent of people living in Birch Creek are covered by health insurance or some other kind of health care plan.

Summary

Blood Pressure & Cholesterol

Eight percent of people living in Birch Creek have been ever told by a doctor or other health professional that they had hypertension (also called high blood pressure). Seventeen percent of people take their blood pressure at home. Twenty four percent of people in Birch Creek frequently check their blood cholesterol. Fifteen percent of people have ever been told by a doctor or other health professional that their blood cholesterol level was high.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Dermatology

Eighteen percent of people living in Birch Creek use sunscreen.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Mental Health

Forty six percent of Birch Creek residents 18 years old and older have usually little interest or pleasure in doing things. Forty seven percent often feel down, depressed, or hopeless. Fifty three percent of people living here have trouble falling or staying asleep, or sleep too much. Seventy eight percent of people often feel tired or have little energy. Fifty eight percent are bothered by poor appetite or overeating. Thirty two percent often feel badly about themselves, that they are a failure or have let themselves or their families down. Thirty eight percent have trouble concentrating on things, such as reading the newspaper or watching TV.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Prescription Medications

Birch Creek residents on average take one prescription medicines.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Alcohol use

Ninety four percent of people living in Birch Creek have at least one alcoholic drink per month. People living here drink alcohol 3.6 days per month on average. They have 6.6 drinks per week. On average people living here have 5 or more drinks on 26 days a year.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Sexual Behavior

Ninety nine percent of Birch Creek residents 18 years and older have ever had vaginal, anal or oral sex. Ninety six percent of males have ever had vaginal sex with a woman. Seventy five percent have ever performed oral sex on a woman. Twenty one percent have ever had anal sex with a woman. Hundred percent of females have ever had vaginal sex with a man. Hundred percent have ever performed oral sex on a man. Thirty three percent have ever had anal sex. Twenty five percent of females have ever had any kind of sex with a woman. People in Birch Creek were 15 years old on average when they had sex for the first time. The average man in his lifetime had any kind of sex with 28 women. He has vaginal sex with 14 women. People living here were on average 20 years old when they first performed oral sex on a woman. In their lifetime they performed oral sex on average on three women. People in Birch Creek were 18 years old on average when they first performed oral sex on a man. The average person in Birch Creek has vaginal or anal sex 64 times a year. Twenty seven percent have sex without using a condom. Females in Birch Creek 18 years and older have had any kind of sex with 10 men on average. They have had 10 male vaginal sex partners in their lifetimes. Women here have on average 0.7 female sex partners in their lifetimes. Fifty four percent of men 18 years old and older are circumcised.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Pesticide Use

Four percent of households in Birch Creek use chemical products in their homes to control fleas, roaches, ants, termites or other insects. Eleven percent use chemical products in their lawns or gardens to kill weeds.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Sleep Disorders

Birch Creek residents 16 years and older usually get six hours of sleep at night on weekdays or workdays. Twenty eight percent of them have trouble sleeping.

Summary

Smoking-Cigarette Use

Fifty one percent of Birch Creek residents currently smoke cigarettes.

Summary

Physical Activity

Sixteen percent of Birch Creek residents' work involve vigorous-intensity activity that causes large increases in breathing or heart rate, like carrying or lifting heavy loads, digging or construction work for at least 10 minutes continuously. Twenty nine percent of people do moderate-intensity activities at work that cause small increases in breathing or heart rate such as brisk walking or carrying light loads for at least 10 minutes continuously. Fifty six percent walk or bicycle for at least 10 minutes continuously to get to and from places. Fourteen percent do any vigorous-intensity sports, fitness or recreational activities that cause large increases in breathing or heart rate like running or basketball for at least 10 minutes continuously. Forty two percent do any moderate-intensity sports, fitness or recreational activities that cause a small increase in breathing or heart rate such as brisk walking, bicycling, swimming or golf for at least 10 minutes continuously. People living here spend five hours sitting on a typical day (this includes sitting at work, at home, getting to and from places, or with friends, including time spent sitting at a desk, traveling in a car or bus, reading, playing cards, watching television or using a computer). They usually sit and watch TV or videos for about two hours per day. They use a computer or play computer games (including Playstation, Nintendo DS, or other portable video games) outside of work or school for 1.4 hours per day.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Medical Conditions

Eight percent of Birch Creek residents have ever been told by a doctor or other health professional that they had asthma. Three percent of people living here has anemia, sometimes called "tired blood" or "low blood". Sixteen percent are overweight. Seven percent of people 60 years and older have difficulties in thinking or remembering that can make a big difference in everyday activities (this does not refer to occasionally forgetting your keys or the name of someone you recently met). This refers to things like confusion or memory loss that are happening more often or getting worse. Twelve percent of people living in Birch Creek have ever received a blood transfusion. Thirty nine percent have trouble seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses. Seventeen percent of people 20 and older have arthritis. One percent have congestive heart failure. One percent have coronary heart disease. Four percent have ever had a heart attack, also called myocardial infarction. Three percent have been ever told by a doctor or other health professional that they had a stroke. Eight percent have another thyroid problem. Two percent have ever had chronic bronchitis. Two percent of people had any kind of liver condition. Four percent have ever had cancer or a malignancy of any kind.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Reproductive Health

Seventy four percent of births in Birch Creek were vaginal deliveries. Twenty six percent of deliveries were cesarean. 99.9 percent of deliveries resulted in live births. Fifty two percent of pregnancies resulted in a delivery. Fifty three percent of women breastfeed their children. Seventy percent have ever taken birth control pills for any reason. Thirty percent have ever used Depo-Provera or injectable birth control to prevent pregnancy.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Current Health Status

People living in Birch Creek report their general health condition on average at 47 percent. Three percent of them donate blood. Excluding tests they have had as part of blood donations, 29 percent of Birch Creek residents have ever had their blood tested for the AIDS virus infection. Five percent of people living in Birch Creek are left-handed.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Consumer Behavior

People in Birch Creek spend $391 per month on average on food for their families at supermarkets or grocery stores. This is 20 percent of their income. The average family in Birch Creek spends $122 on food at other stores monthly. This is seven percent of their income. They spend $115 on eating out, including cafeterias at work or at school or on vending machines. This is eight percent of their income. They also spend $12 monthly on carried out or delivered food. This is two percent of their income.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Audiometry

People living in Birch Creek report their general condition of hearing on average at 79 percent. Seventy seven percent of them can usually hear and understand, without the use of a hearing aid or any other listening devices, what a person says without seeing his or her face if that person whispers to them from across a quiet room. Ninety two percent of people can hear a normal voice across a quiet room. Twenty five percent of Birch Creek population have been bothered by ringing, roaring or buzzing in their ears or head. Fifty eight percent of people living here have ever had a job where they were exposed to loud sounds or noise. Loud means so loud that they must speak in a raised voice to be heard. Eleven percent of people in Birch Creek had off-work exposure to loud noise.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Preventive Aspirin Use

Thirty percent of Birch Creek residents 40 and older take a low-dose aspirin each day to prevent heart attacks, strokes or cancer.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.

Physical Functioning

Twenty one percent of Birch Creek residents 20 or older have limitations caused by a long-term physical, mental or emotional problems or illnesses keeping them from working at a job or business. Twenty three percent are limited in the kind or amount of work they can do because of physical, mental or emotional problems. Six percent have difficulty walking without using any special equipment. Eighteen percent are limited in any way because of difficulty remembering or because they experience periods of confusion.

Summary

The biggest differences compared to state averages have been highlighted with a blue background.