NCHS Data Brief

Smoking during pregnancy is an established risk factor for adverse pregnancy outcomes and health issues for newborns later in life (1-3). National birth certificate data on cigarette smoking and the number of cigarettes smoked before and during pregnancy first became available in 2016. These data allow for the analysis of maternal cigarette use during pregnancy by numerous maternal and infant characteristics. This report describes changes in the number and percentage of mothers who smoked cigarettes at any time during pregnancy in the United States from 2016 to 2021 and changes between 2016 and 2021 in the percentage of mothers who smoked during pregnancy by maternal age, race and Hispanic origin, and state of residence...

An allergy occurs when an individual's immune system misclassifies typically harmless substances as harmful and has a specific and reproducible immune response (1,2). The severity of allergy symptoms can range from itchy, watery eyes and hives to life-threatening anaphylaxis, and the presence of allergies can negatively impact an individual's quality of life (3-6). This report uses 2021 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data to describe the prevalence of seasonal allergies, eczema, and food allergies in adults in the United States...

The percentage of children with certain allergic conditions has increased over previous decades (1,2). Seasonal allergies, which includes hay fever, allergic rhinitis, and allergic conjunctivitis, causes sneezing, cough, runny nose, and itchy eyes. Eczema, also known as atopic dermatitis, causes itchy, bumpy rashes and thickened skin that can appear anywhere on the body. Food allergies can cause hives, vomiting, trouble breathing, or throat tightening. Children with allergic conditions may have increased healthcare use and decreased quality of life (3)...

Sleep medications are a common treatment option for insomnia (1). Insufficient sleep is associated with many negative mental and physical health outcomes, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity, depression, and an increased risk of injury (2). The prevalence of sleep difficulties and use of sleep medication has differed between men and women (3-5). This report uses 2020 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data to describe the percentage of men and women who used medication for sleep, defined here as taking any medication to help fall or stay asleep most days or every day in the past 30 days, by selected sociodemographic characteristics...

Opioids may be an effective treatment for chronic and acute pain when properly used (1). However, receiving an opioid prescription in the emergency department (ED) has been identified as a potential risk factor for long-term use (2). Between 2010-2011 and 2016-2017, the percentage of opioids prescribed at ED discharge decreased from 21.5% to 14.6% (3,4). This report provides more recent changes in rates and percentages of opioids prescribed to adults (aged 18 and over) at discharge from the ED by patient and visit characteristics through 2020, using data from the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS)...

Drug overdose deaths have been rising over the past 2 decades in the United States (1-4). This report uses the most recent data from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) to update statistics on deaths from drug overdose in the United States, showing rates by demographic groups and by the types of drugs involved (specifically, opioids and stimulants), with a focus on changes from 2020 through 2021.

This report presents final 2021 U.S. mortality data on deaths and death rates by demographic and medical characteristics. These data provide information on mortality patterns among U.S. residents by variables such as sex, age, race and Hispanic origin, and cause of death. Life expectancy estimates, ageadjusted death rates, age-specific death rates, the 10 leading causes of death,infant mortality rates, and the 10 leading causes of infant death were analyzed by comparing 2021 and 2020 final data (1).

Residents of residential care communities are people who cannot live independently but generally do not require the skilled care provided by nursing homes. On any given day in 2020, an estimated 818,800 residents lived in residential care communities (1,2). With the aging of the population, the number of people living in residential care communities will likely increase, creating a sizeable group within the long-term care population. This report presents national estimates of selected characteristics of residential care community residents in 2020 and compares these characteristics by community size...

An estimated 237,400 participants were enrolled in adult day services centers (ADSCs) in the United States in 2020 (1). Compared with users of other long-term care services, ADSC participants are younger and more racially and ethnically diverse (2). ADSC participants have a diverse set of needs, with many participants requiring assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs) and having chronic health conditions (3). This report presents the most current national estimates of selected characteristics of participants in ADSCs and compares these characteristics by center ownership type...

Unintentional fall injuries occur most frequently among people in older age groups, with over 2 million fall events treated in emergency departments each year among adults aged 65 and over (1,2). A variety of factors contribute to the risk of falling, including difficulties in seeing, walking, and balance; disabilities; medication effects; and environmental walking obstacles, among other factors (3-6). Deaths due to unintentional falls are a leading cause of unintentional injury deaths among adults aged 65 and over (7)...

In 2020, 5,209 drug overdose deaths in adults aged 65 and over were recorded (1). Drug overdose death rates for older adults were lower than for other age groups but have increased in the past 2 decades (1,2). This report presents age-adjusted trends in drug overdose death rates, including trends in the type of opioid drug involved, for adults aged 65 and over for 2000-2020 using mortality data from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS). Age- and sex-specific death rates for adults aged 65-74 and 75 and over are shown by race and Hispanic origin for 2019 and 2020...

In 2020, an estimated 131 million emergency department (ED) visits occurred in the United States, with 19.0% of adults reporting a visit and 4.7% of children reporting two or more visits in the past 12 months (1-3). In that time, over 20 million cases of COVID-19 caused a disruption in access to and use of care (4). This report presents characteristics of ED visits, including those with mentions of COVID-19, by age group, sex, race and ethnicity, and primary expected source of payment, using data from the 2020 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS)(5)...

Suicide rates in the United States have traditionally been higher for non-Hispanic White than non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic people (1). However, provisional data demonstrated that patterns have changed recently with rates declining for non-Hispanic White people but increasing for non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic people (2). This report presents suicide rates from 2000 to 2020 using final data for non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black, and Hispanic people, for the total population and for the three leading methods in 2020 (firearms, suffocation, and poisoning)...

Alcohol use is a known risk factor for mortality, and the rates of alcohol induced deaths have risen over the past several years (1). Alcohol use in the United States increased during the first year of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, which may have affected mortality rates, especially for alcohol-induced deaths (2). Understanding trends in alcohol-induced mortality, with a particular focus on differences from 2019 to 2020, may help identify groups particularly affected during the COVID-19 pandemic...

Death rates in the United States are higher in rural than urban areas, and the difference has grown over the last 2 decades (1). Death rates for all of the 10 leading causes of death in 2019 were higher in rural than urban areas (1). In 2020, deaths due to COVID-19 became the third leading cause of death in the United States (2). This report presents COVID-19 death rates for rural and urban areas in 2020 by sex and age group (under age 65 and 65 and over). Rates are presented for the six categories of urbanicity according to the decedent's county of residence (3)...

COVID-19 was the underlying cause of death for a total of 350,381 deaths in the United States in 2020 (1). Although COVID-19 can affect people of any age, older adults were especially impacted during the first year of the pandemic: 81% of COVID-19 deaths in 2020 (282,836) occurred among those aged 65 and over. In this age group, COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death, after heart disease and cancer (1). This report describes COVID-19 mortality in 2020 by selected characteristics in the population aged 65 and over...

Telemedicine is a way for health care providers to deliver clinical health care to patients remotely through a computer or telephone, without an in-person office visit (1). The demonstrated benefits of telemedicine include improved access to care, convenience, and slowing spread of infection (1,2). During the COVID-19 pandemic, legislation expanded coverage for telemedicine health care services (3). This report uses 2021 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data to describe the percentage of adults who used telemedicine in the past 12 months by sociodemographic and geographic characteristics...

In 2020, the percentage of adults who had received any mental health treatment in the past 12 months was significantly higher than in 2019 (1,2). Previous research has found that symptoms of an anxiety disorder or a depressive disorder increased from 2020 through the beginning of 2021, especially among younger adults (3). This report describes trends in the percentage of adults aged 18-44 who had received any mental health treatment, defined as having either taken medication for mental health, received counseling or therapy, or both in the past 12 months by selected characteristics based on data from the 2019-2021 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS)...

Regular physical activity can improve overall health and prevent negative health outcomes in people of all ages (1). Increasing the proportion of adults meeting the 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans for both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities is a Healthy People 2030 Leading Health Indicator (2), highlighting its priority for well-being. Research shows that health benefits occur with at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, and that both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities are beneficial (1)...

This report presents selected highlights from 2021 final birth data on key demographic, healthcare use, and infant health indicators. The number of births, general fertility rates (GFRs) (births per 1,000 females aged 15-44), age-specific birth rates (births per 1,000 females in specified age group), vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) delivery rates, and preterm (less than 37 weeks of gestation) birth rates are presented. Results for 2019, 2020, and 2021 are shown for all births to provide context for changes in birth patterns noted during 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic (1,2)...