Risks to health among American Indian/Alaska Native high school students in the United States.

Introduction: According to the World Health Organization, the 10 leading risk factor causes of death in high-income countries are tobacco use, high blood pressure, overweight and obesity, physical inactivity, high blood glucose, high cholesterol, low fruit and vegetable intake, urban air pollution, alcohol use, and occupational risks. We examined the prevalence of some of the leading risks to health among nationally representative samples of American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) high school students and compared rates across racial/ethnic groups.

Methods: We combined data from the 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2009 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey.