Strengths:

• Low levels of air pollution
• Low rates of cancer deaths and cardiovascular deaths
• Lower prevalence of obesity and diabetes than most other states

 

Challenges:

• Moderate prevalence of binge drinking
• High geographic disparity within the state
• Limited access to early prenatal care

 

Highlights:

• In the past five years, diabetes increased from 4.8 percent to 6.0 percent of adults. There are now over 300,000 adults with diabetes in the state.
• In the past five years, smoking decreased from 19.8 percent to 16.0 percent of adults; however, more than 810,000 adults still smoke.
• In the past ten years, the percentage of children in poverty increased from 10.9 percent to 18.5 percent of persons under age 18.
• In the past year, the rate of uninsured population decreased from 15.6 percent to 13.8 percent.
• While Colorado has one of the lowest obesity rates in the U.S., over 1.0 million adults in Colorado are obese, an increase of 475,000 individuals in the past 10 years.

 

Disparities:

• In Colorado, obesity is more prevalent among non-Hispanic blacks at 27.9 percent than non-Hispanic whites at 18.3 percent. Diabetes among non-Hispanic blacks is double the rate among non-Hispanic whites.

 

State Health Department Web Site: www.cdphe.state.co.us