The Oral Health Program has published results from a statewide children's oral health survey conducted during the 2010-11 school year. The report shows that while dental decay is a significant public health problem for Rhode Island children, school-based/school-linked dental programs may help reduce gaps in children's receipt of preventive services.

The Initiative for a Healthy Weight program has released the Burden of Overweight and Obesity 2011 that describes the impact of obesity, including risk factors, trends, and disparities.

The New Year is a symbol of renewal and can be a time to prepare for new beginnings. It is a time to set goals and make them public so that you can get support and encouragement from friends and family. Many smokers use the New Year's holiday as motivation to quit. For some, this is the first time they've tried to quit; for others, they may have tried before. Regardless, this may be the most important resolution a smoker ever makes. Almost 50 million smokers have successfully quit and you can too. You don't have to go it alone either. The Rhode Island smokers' quitline can help. Call 1-800-QUIT-NOW. Why Quit? Cigarette smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals and chemical compounds, many of which are toxic and can even cause cancer. Smoking is one cause of dangerous plaque buildup inside your arteries. This can limit blood flow throw your heart, triggering chest pain, weakness, heart attack, or stroke. Completely blocked arteries can cause sudden death. Fortunately, people who stop smoking can greatly reduce their risk for disease and premature death. And the younger you are when you quit, the better your chance for avoiding these problems. So don't wait! If you quit smoking, you will also help protect your children, family, and friends from exposure to secondhand smoke that can cause immediate harm to the nonsmokers who breathe it. If babies and children are exposed to secondhand smoke from cigarettes, they may suffer from bronchitis, pneumonia, and ear infections. Exposure may make them wheeze and cough more often. If they have asthma, breathing in secondhand smoke from cigarettes can trigger an attack that may be severe enough to send them to the hospital. Secondhand smoke also causes sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). There is no safe amount of secondhand exposure. Breathing even a little secondhand smoke can be dangerous. Quitting smoking will improve your health and protect others from exposure to secondhand smoke. How to Quit The most important thing is to try! Although no single approach works best for everyone, many effective quit methods are available. Talk to your doctor or health care provider about quitting, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW, or visit www.quitnowri.com for free information and support. - You can get ready by setting a quit date and by changing your environment. Get rid of ALL cigarettes and ashtrays in your home, car, and place of work. - Get support and encouragement. Tell your family, friends, and coworkers that you are going to quit and want their support. - Get individual, group, or telephone counseling. Counseling doubles your chances of success. Telephone counseling is also available free of charge at 1-800-QUIT-NOW. - Try to distract yourself from urges to smoke. Talk to someone, go for a walk, or get busy with a task. Plan something enjoyable to do every day. Drink a lot of water and other fluids. - Talk to your doctor about medication. Medications are available both over-the-counter and by prescription and can help you stop smoking and lessen the urge to smoke. Regardless of how you decide to quit, whether you use medicines, counseling, or simply stopping smoking now, the most important thing is to try and stick to it.

HEALTH's Initiative for a Healthy Weight (IHW) program has launched a new action plan in an effort to lower the rates of obesity among children enrolled in early care and education centers.

Rhode Island ranked 10th in overall health in 2011, according to 2011 America's Health Rankings by the United Health Foundation in collaboration with the American Public Health Association and Partnership for Prevention. The state's rank was unchanged from last year. Rhode Island's strengths included high immunization coverage, low rate of uninsured population, and the ready availability of primary care physicians. Rhode Island's challenges included high prevalence of binge drinking, high percentage of children in poverty, and a high rate of preventable hospitalizations.