Nearly 60% Of Nassau Residents Are Overweight Or Obese :

58.5% of Nassau residents are overweight or obese, and that Hispanics are less healthy than other ethnicities in the County.

But Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi announced a Department of Health study that found Nassau residents are, on average, healthier than people in the rest of the state and nation.

The purpose of the survey is to identify current and emerging health problems, document and describe the health of the population, and develop public health policies and programs. The survey also provides critical information for targeting local areas of need and for evaluating the effectiveness of public health and health care initiatives.

"Just as individual doctors monitor the vital signs of their patients, the Department of Health is substantially improving its ability to monitor the vital signs of every community in the County," Suozzi said. "This survey provides crucial information for our Healthy Nassau campaign, to make Nassau the healthiest county in the nation by 2020."

As part of his ongoing campaign to promote fitness and health, Suozzi recently announced the "Biggest Loser" Weight-Off, a 10-week weight-loss competition for County workers. The contest's sponsors – the police unions, the CSEA and the County Executive – will give cash prizes to the employees who lose the most weight, as a percentage of their initial weight.

For the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, the Health Department conducted 20-minute phone interviews with 5,200 randomly selected residents. The subjects answered 141 questions in 20-minute interviews, conducted in English and Spanish. The questions covered four major categories: Health Status and Access; Health Behaviors and Lifestyle Choices; Health Conditions, and Cancer Screening.

Overall, the BRFSS data revealed that in many areas the county's health is better than in New York State and the nation. However, several troubling findings also emerged. Hispanics appear to be faring worse than other races/ethnicities. The data also showed that residents who are younger, have less money, less education or are uninsured receive less preventive care.

Other findings include:

    * Only 45% of residents reported participating in recommended levels of physical activity.

    * Only 25% of residents reported eating recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables.

    * Approximately 14% of residents reported binge or heavy drinking within the past 30 days.

    * Approximately 15% of residents identified themselves as current smokers.

Tobacco use, poor diet, physical inactivity and alcohol consumption are the leading personal behaviors that significantly increase the risk of cardiovascular and coronary heart disease and lung cancer, which are the major causes of death in the United States.

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