MMWR

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report

Alcohol Use Among High School Students – Georgia, 2007

Press Contact: Ravae Graham
Georgia Department of Community Health
(404) 463-1718

Liquor is the most commonly consumed alcoholic beverage among high school students in Georgia, particularly among binge drinkers, and most students who drink do so in another person’s home and obtain alcohol from someone else. Effective community-based strategies for preventing underage and binge drinking (e.g. maintaining and enforcing the age 21 minimum legal drinking age, increasing alcohol excise taxes, and limiting alcohol outlet density) should be widely implemented. Youth exposure to alcohol marketing should also be reduced. Liquor is the most common alcoholic beverage usually consumed by high school students in Georgia, and most Georgia high school students who drink do so in another person’s home and obtain alcohol from someone else, according to a new study released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study analyzes 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) data from 2,465 Georgia 9th to 12th grade students. Among the 38 percent of students who were current drinkers (consumed alcohol in the past 30 days), 44 percent reported consuming liquor (e.g., bourbon, rum, scotch, vodka, or whiskey); 58 percent reported drinking in another person’s home; and 62 percent either obtained alcohol from someone who gave it to them (37 percent) or purchased it for them (25 percent). Liquor consumption was also significantly higher (54 percent) among students who reported binge drinking.

Childhood Lead Poisoning Associated with Lead Dust Contamination of Family Vehicles and Child Safety Seats – Maine, 2008

Press Contact: Jay Dempsey
NCEH/ATSDR Office of Communications
(770)488-0700

Lead poisoning has decreased among children in the United States because of federal, state and community efforts to reduce exposure. This report highlights in 2008 the Maine Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program (MCLPPP) identified 6 new cases of elevated blood lead levels among children younger than 6 years of age through mandated routine screening. MCLPPP determined that the primary source of lead exposure was lead dust in the family vehicles and on the child safety seats and provided recommendations to prevent continued exposure. These are the first known cases of lead poisoning caused by elevated lead dust associated with child safety seats. The prevention recommendations included proper washing of work clothing and thorough vacuuming and wet cleaning of the vehicle interiors and replacement of any child safety seat that tested positive for lead dust. Persons employed in high-risk lead-related occupations can transport lead dust home from a worksite through clothing, shoes, tools, or vehicles. Current recommendations for identifying and reducing risk from take-home lead poisoning include 1) ensuring that children with elevated BLLs are identified through targeted blood lead testing, 2) directing prevention activities to at-risk workers and employers, and 3) improving employer safety protocols. These reports highlight the need for State and federal prevention programs should consider, when appropriate, expanded environmental testing to include lead dust testing of vehicles and child safety seats when occupational exposure is suspected and to reinforce lead safety work practices.

(Previously Released) Oseltamivir-Resistant Novel Influenza A (H1N1) Virus Infection in Immunosuppressed Patients Receiving Oseltamivir Therapy

Press Contact: CDC, Division of Media Relations
Phone: (404) 639-3286

No summary available.

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES