Table 4

Frequency distributions (weighted percentages) of variables related to activity restrictions, body weight, smoking, and physical activity, by country and pattern of health-care use in the past 12 months: Joint Canada/US Survey of Health, 2002–03*


United States
 Canada
Variable
 Category
 GP only (n = 3565)
 GP+DC (n = 511)
 DC only (n = 84)
 GP only (n = 2434)
 GP+DC (n = 397)
 DC only (n = 51)
Pain/activity limits
 No pain/discomfort
 79.3
 74.5
 79.7
 81.0
 73.2
 90.3
Activity restrictions
 Often
 11.5
 10.7
 5.6
 11.0
 10.4
 6.7

Sometimes
 19.7
 24.6
 23.5
 20.2
 27.3
 12.3

Never
 67.3
 63.6
 70.2
 67.8
 61.8
 79.4
Back/neck problems
 Activity limiting
 8.9
 16.9
 12.8
 10.0
 22.2
 5.5
Smoking status
 Current
 20.8
 20.4
 15.7
 24.0
 19.9
 49.6

Past
 24.6
 28.3
 29.1
 29.2
 34.8
 7.6

Never
 54.0
 50.9
 55.2
 46.5
 44.9
 42.9
Body weight
 Under/normal weight
 42.5
 40.9
 37.7
 48.7
 46.5
 55.5

Overweight
 32.4
 31.4
 41.6
 32.3
 35.4
 34.1

Obese
 20.8
 23.7
 18.3
 15.4
 15.7
 8.6
Physical activity (past 3 months)
 Active
 20.4
 22.6
 18.5
 25.7
 27.8
 21.5

Moderate
 20.0
 21.2
 18.2
 26.3
 25.7
 21.7

Inactive
 56.5
 54.3
 60.7
 47.0
 45.6
 56.8
Activity frequency (past 3 months)
 Regular
 55.6
 56.1
 56.5
 66.3
 68.3
 58.6

Occasional
 16.1
 19.2
 13.2
 15.8
 18.6
 17.4

Infrequent
 25.2
 22.8
 27.7
 16.8
 12.2
 24.0

* Weighted percentages may not sum to 100 because of missing data or exclusion of certain categories; percentages weighted to account for age, sex, region (Canada only), and race/ethnicity (U.S. only); 3565, 511, and 84 represent 138,802,519, 20,060,412, and 3,453,164 adults, respectively, in the U.S.; 2434, 397, and 51 represent 16,555,719, 2,723,870, and 381,147 adults, respectively, in Canada.

GP = general practitioner or family doctor; DC = Doctor of Chiropractic.

Hurwitz and Chiang BMC Health Services Research 2006 6:49   doi:10.1186/1472-6963-6-49