Health News
- Higher-income Kentuckians' Reported Health Keeps Declining; Reports From Those With Lower Incomes Go Up, Marginally
A statewide poll again finds that Kentuckians with higher incomes consider themselves in better health than those with lower incomes. The latest Kentucky Health Issues Poll, taken Oct. 8 through Nov. 6, found that 55 percent of Kentucky adults who are...
- Poll Illustrates How Having Insurance And Access To A Health Care Provider Doesn't Mean You Can Afford The Care
Just because a person has appropriate access to a health care provider doesn't mean they can afford to pay for their services, according to the latest Kentucky Health Issues Poll. The poll found that three out of every four Kentuckians with health...
- Economic Upturn Boosts Share Of Kentuckians On Employer-based Health Coverage; Health Reform Boosts Number On Public Plans
Half of Kentucky's working-age adults now get health insurance through their employers, up from 37 percent two years ago, reversing a downward trend that began with the Great Recession. Meanwhile, under federal health reform, many more Kentuckians...
- One Of Every Three Kentucky Adults Didn't See A Dentist Last Year; Key Factors Are Overall Health, Insurance And Income
More than a third of Kentucky adults say they didn't go to a dentist last year, and one in six said they hadn't in five years or more, according to the latest Kentucky Health Issues Poll. The results show the challenges Kentucky adults who are...
- Survey Suggests Great Recession Has Harmed The Health Of Kentuckians
A recent poll shows continuation of a trend threatening Kentucky's overall health: as the number of Kentuckians living in poverty goes up, the percentage of adults who report their health as excellent or very good goes down. Just over four in 10...
Health News
Poll: Only 23% of Kentuckians say they eat recommended daily portions of fruits and vegetables; cost and location may be factors
Only 23 percent of Kentuckians eat the recommended daily portions of fruits and vegetables, and cost and accessibility of food may be factors, according to a recent statewide poll.
Fruit and vegetable consumption can decrease a person's chance of developing chronic diseases like cancer and high blood pressure. Kentuckians fall short of the recommended portions; 26 percent eat the recommended amount of fruit, 12 percent eat the recommended amount of vegetables, and 39 percent don't meet either recommendation, according to the latest Kentucky Health Issues Poll, taken Oct. 25 through Nov. 26.
Income appears to be an influencing factor, because just 30 percent of Kentuckians whose incomes are below 138 percent of the federal poverty level (the limit for Medicaid) said they have an excellent or very good diet, while 47 percent with incomes above 200 percent of the FPL said they did. Although 81 percent of those surveyed said they had easy access to healthy foods, of those in non-Appalachian counties 10 percent said they did not; the latter number was higher in Appalachian counties, where 20 percent said they did not.
Cost is also a concern. Half of the respondents said fruit and vegetable prices in their areas are fair to poor, and only 19 percent reported excellent or very good prices.
The Kentucky Health Issues Poll is funded by the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky and Interact for Health, formerly the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati. It surveyed 1,551 randomly selected Kentucky adults,
Fruit and vegetable consumption can decrease a person's chance of developing chronic diseases like cancer and high blood pressure. Kentuckians fall short of the recommended portions; 26 percent eat the recommended amount of fruit, 12 percent eat the recommended amount of vegetables, and 39 percent don't meet either recommendation, according to the latest Kentucky Health Issues Poll, taken Oct. 25 through Nov. 26.
The recommended dietary suggestion for adults is to make half their plate fruits and vegetables at every meal. This guideline assures that adults would get at least two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables per day, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines.
Some Kentuckians seem to know they don't eat well; only 39 percent of those surveyed said they have an excellent or very good diet. In general, those who claimed to have better diets also had better health, which comes as no surprise. However, 38 percent of adults who claimed excellent or very good health did not meet the dietary recommendation for fruit or vegetable consumption.
Income appears to be an influencing factor, because just 30 percent of Kentuckians whose incomes are below 138 percent of the federal poverty level (the limit for Medicaid) said they have an excellent or very good diet, while 47 percent with incomes above 200 percent of the FPL said they did. Although 81 percent of those surveyed said they had easy access to healthy foods, of those in non-Appalachian counties 10 percent said they did not; the latter number was higher in Appalachian counties, where 20 percent said they did not.
Cost is also a concern. Half of the respondents said fruit and vegetable prices in their areas are fair to poor, and only 19 percent reported excellent or very good prices.
The Kentucky Health Issues Poll is funded by the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky and Interact for Health, formerly the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati. It surveyed 1,551 randomly selected Kentucky adults,
- Higher-income Kentuckians' Reported Health Keeps Declining; Reports From Those With Lower Incomes Go Up, Marginally
A statewide poll again finds that Kentuckians with higher incomes consider themselves in better health than those with lower incomes. The latest Kentucky Health Issues Poll, taken Oct. 8 through Nov. 6, found that 55 percent of Kentucky adults who are...
- Poll Illustrates How Having Insurance And Access To A Health Care Provider Doesn't Mean You Can Afford The Care
Just because a person has appropriate access to a health care provider doesn't mean they can afford to pay for their services, according to the latest Kentucky Health Issues Poll. The poll found that three out of every four Kentuckians with health...
- Economic Upturn Boosts Share Of Kentuckians On Employer-based Health Coverage; Health Reform Boosts Number On Public Plans
Half of Kentucky's working-age adults now get health insurance through their employers, up from 37 percent two years ago, reversing a downward trend that began with the Great Recession. Meanwhile, under federal health reform, many more Kentuckians...
- One Of Every Three Kentucky Adults Didn't See A Dentist Last Year; Key Factors Are Overall Health, Insurance And Income
More than a third of Kentucky adults say they didn't go to a dentist last year, and one in six said they hadn't in five years or more, according to the latest Kentucky Health Issues Poll. The results show the challenges Kentucky adults who are...
- Survey Suggests Great Recession Has Harmed The Health Of Kentuckians
A recent poll shows continuation of a trend threatening Kentucky's overall health: as the number of Kentuckians living in poverty goes up, the percentage of adults who report their health as excellent or very good goes down. Just over four in 10...