Texas
Please be sure to read the data notes & limitations page. This explains many aspects of these comments, including how only changes over time can be discussed as statistically significant, and why the comparisons with national rates discuss data for selected subgroups.
Overview of Findings
Data indicating changes for Texas were limited to a few objectives and findings were mixed. Overall mortality decreased among younger and older adolescents, but increased among young adults. Rates remained flat for motor vehicle crash mortality among older adolescents, homicide and suicide. Because baseline data were not available for most objectives, change in most areas could not be evaluated.
Final rates for most objectives in Texas roughly matched national rates. Exceptions were safety belt use, which compared favorably to national rates. Rates for a few objectives in Texas compared unfavorably to national rates, including riding with a driver who had been drinking, sexual experience, and current sexual activity.
Highlights of Findings by Objective
Jump To: Mortality; Unintentional Injury; Violence; Substance Use and Mental Health; Reproductive Health; Chronic Disease Prevention
Mortality
The rate of overall mortality decreased in Texas for younger and older adolescents, but increased among young adults, with an especially large increase among White males. This pattern held for most subgroups. Exceptions include a mortality decrease among Black and Hispanic young adults. In 2007, the mortality rate for males was higher than females across all age and racial/ethnic groups; this gender difference in overall mortality was threefold among young adults. Among older adolescents and young adults, Hispanics had the highest rates, followed by Blacks, Whites, and then Asian/Pacific Islanders; among younger adolescents, Blacks had the highest rates, followed by Whites, then Hispanics.
Comparison with national data. As in Texas, national mortality rates decreased for younger and older adolescents, and increased among young adults. Also similar to Texas, rates among Black young adults decreased; however, the national rate for Hispanic young adults increased, in contrast to a decrease Texas. In 2007, rates of overall mortality for Texas were similar to national rates across all three age groups, with a few notable differences among subgroups. White older adolescent and young adult males in Texas had higher rates than those groups did nationally; Black and Hispanic young adult males had lower rates than those groups nationally. The national gender pattern matched the pattern noted for Texas. Patterns by race/ethnicity differed somewhat. Nationally, Blacks had the highest mortality rates among older adolescents and young adults; by contrast, Hispanics had the highest rates in Texas. Among older adolescents nationally Whites and Hispanics had similar rates, in contrast to much higher rates among Hispanics in Texas.
Unintentional Injury
(motor vehicle crashes, safety belt use, & riding with a driver who has been drinking alcohol)
Please note the data for safety belt use are presented as “not wearing safety belt,” the inverse of the objective. This text describes safety belt use.
Mortality in Texas due to motor vehicle crashes (MVC) decreased slightly from baseline, overall and across subgroups. In 2007, the rate of MVC mortality for males was more than twice the rate for females. Whites had the highest rates, followed by Hispanics, and then Blacks.
Comparison with national data. National motor vehicle crash mortality was flat overall, compared to slight decreases in Texas. In 2007, the national rate virtually matched the rate for Texas; White males in Texas had higher rates than that group nationally, whereas Texas rates for Black and Hispanic males were lower than the rates for those groups nationally. The national gender and racial/ethnic patterns matched those noted in Texas.
In 2009 rates of safety belt use in Texas were slightly higher among females than among males.
Differences among racial/ethnic subgroups were fairly small. Whites had the highest rates of safety belt use, followed by Hispanics, then Blacks.
Comparison with national data. In 2009, the overall rate of safety belt use for Texas adolescents was higher than the national rate. The national gender pattern matched the pattern noted for Texas. However, the racial/ethnic pattern differed slightly. Nationally, Hispanics had a slightly higher rate than Whites; Blacks had the lowest rates. As in Texas, racial/ethnic differences were fairly small.
In 2009, rates of adolescents in Texas who reported riding with a driver who had been drinking alcohol were slightly higher among males than females; this gender difference was larger among Blacks and Whites. Hispanics had the highest rate of this behavior; Whites had slightly higher rates than Blacks.
Comparison with national data. In 2009, the rate of Texas adolescents who rode with a driver who had been drinking alcohol was higher than the national rate. Nationally, males and females had roughly matching rates, in contrast to higher rates among males in Texas. As in Texas, Hispanics had the highest rates nationally; however, Blacks had slightly higher rates than Whites, the reverse of the pattern noted in Texas.
Violence
(homicide, physical fighting, weapon carrying)
The rate of homicide in Texas was mostly flat from baseline for older adolescents overall and for most subgroups of older adolescents. One exception was a decrease among Black male older adolescents. In 2007, among older adolescents, males had more than three times the rate of females and Blacks had more than twice the rate for Hispanics in that age group and three times the rate of Whites.
Comparison with national data. The national homicide rate for older adolescents was also flat overall from baseline, with some variations among subgroups. In 2007, the national homicide rate for older adolescents roughly matched the rate for that group in Texas, with some notable exception among subgroups. The final rate for Black male older adolescents in Texas was half the rate for that group nationally; older adolescent Hispanic males also had much lower rates than Hispanics nationally. Rates were higher among White male older adolescents compared to that group nationally. The national gender and racial/ethnic patterns among older adolescents were similar to the patterns noted among those groups in Texas.
Texas rates of physical fighting among males in 2009 were nearly twice the rates among females. Rates were highest among Blacks, followed by Hispanics, and then Whites.
Comparison with national data. The Texas rate of physical fighting in 2009 was only slightly higher than the national rate. The national gender and racial/ethnic patterns were similar to the patterns noted in Texas.
Rates of adolescent weapon carrying in Texas in 2009 were four times higher among males than females. Whites had the highest rate, followed by Hispanics, who had slightly a higher rate than Blacks; Asians had the lowest rate.
Comparison with national data. The overall rate of weapon carrying in Texas in 2009 virtually matched the national rate. The overall national gender and racial/ethnic patterns roughly matched the patterns noted for Texas.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health
(binge drinking, marijuana use, suicide, suicide attempts requiring medical attention)
In 2009, rates of binge drinking in Texas were slightly higher for males than females. Whites had the highest rate, followed closely by Hispanics; Blacks had the lowest rate.
Comparison with national data. Nationally, males also had slightly higher rates of binge drinking than females. The national racial/ethnic patterns matched the patterns noted in Texas.
In 2009, rates of marijuana use in Texas were higher among males than females. Hispanics had the highest rate, followed closely by Blacks; Whites had the lowest rates.
Comparison with national data. Nationally, males and females had roughly matching rates of marijuana use, similar to the small difference in Texas. Nationally, Whites had the highest rate, followed by Blacks, then Hispanics. This is the reverse of the pattern noted in Texas, where Hispanics had the highest rate and Whites had the lowest.
The rate of suicide mortality in Texas was flat among older adolescents overall and among most subgroups for which data were available. In 2007, males had about four times the rate of females. The rate for White older adolescents matched the rate for Hispanic older adolescents.
Comparison with national data. The national rate of suicide mortality among older adolescents also changed little from baseline. In 2007, the Texas rate of suicide mortality for older adolescents roughly matched the national rate for that group. As in Texas, males had much higher rates than females nationally. In Texas, White and Hispanic older adolescents had roughly equal rates, in contrast to slightly higher rates among Whites than Hispanics nationally.
In 2009, the rate of adolescent suicide attempts requiring medical attention among females in Texas was higher than the rate for males. Overall racial/ethnic differences were small. Hispanics had the highest rate; Blacks, Whites and Asians had roughly matching rates.
Comparison with national data. The overall rate in Texas of suicide attempts requiring medical attention roughly matched the national rate in 2009. The national gender pattern matched the pattern noted in Texas. Also as in Texas, racial/ethnic differences were small, however the pattern differed from the pattern in Texas. Nationally Blacks had the highest rates, followed by Hispanics, Whites and Asians.
Reproductive Health
(sexual inexperience, no current sexual activity, condom use)
Please note, for the first two objectives, the text and tables present findings about adolescents who are sexually experienced and currently sexually active, the inverse of the actual objective. For the third objective, the table presents findings for lack of condom use, the inverse of the objective. The text describes condom use. (See Data Notes & Limitations).
Final rates of Texas adolescents having engaged in sexual intercourse were higher among males than among females. Rates of this behavior were highest among Blacks followed by Hispanics, and then Whites.
Comparison with national data. In 2009, the Texas rate of adolescents having engaged in sexual intercourse was higher than the national rate. Rates among males matched rates among females, in contrast to higher rates for males in Texas. The national racial/ethnic pattern matched the pattern noted for Texas.
In 2009, the rate of sexually experienced adolescents in Texas reporting current sexual activity was slightly higher among females than males; the reverse was true among Blacks. The rate for Blacks was highest, followed closely by Hispanics; Whites had the next highest rate and Asians had the lowest rate.
Comparison with national data. The 2009 rate of currently sexually active adolescents in Texas was slightly higher than the national rate. The national gender pattern matched the pattern noted for Texas. The national racial/ethnic pattern was also similar to the pattern in Texas, with a few variations in the magnitude of differences among groups.
In 2009, rates of adolescent condom use in Texas were higher among males than among females. Blacks had the highest rate, followed by Whites, and then Hispanics.
Comparison with national data. The overall rate of condom use in Texas in 2009 was slightly lower than the national rate; however the rate for Whites in Texas was higher than the national rate. The national gender pattern matched the pattern noted for Texas. Also as in Texas, Hispanics reported the lowest rate. However, rates were highest for Whites and Blacks, who had very similar rates, in contrast to higher rates among Blacks in Texas.
(tobacco use)
Rates of tobacco use among adolescents in Texas in 2009 were higher among males than females. Whites had the highest rate, followed by Hispanics, then Blacks. Asians had the lowest rate.
Comparison with national data. In 2009, the Texas rate of tobacco use roughly matched the national rate. National gender and racial/ethnic patterns of tobacco use groups matched the patterns noted for Texas.
Additional data may be available at: http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/adolescent/thdr.shtm
