A 130-page report recently released to the public details the health of Somerville residents. It also addresses how education, housing, as well as the economy, environment and community might affect health in Somerville.

The Well Being of Somerville Report 2011 is based on research conducted by the Cambridge Health Alliance, the Institute for Community Health and the city of Somerville.

Directors from those organizations and other public health workers gathered Friday at the Center for Arts at the Armory to celebrate the release of the report. They also handed it out to local leaders and community agency members who they hoped would reference it when creating policies or programs.

Here are examples of the many statistics and recommendations from the report’s three sections: 

DEMOGRAPHICS

• Approximately 31 percent of residents are between 25 and 34 years old, which the authors write is a positive measure of health for a city. But to keep this group, they conclude, housing costs, childcare and schools must be “strong and affordable.”  

DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH

• A total of 73.7 percent of homes in Somerville were built before 1940, according to the report. Older homes “require additional attention to risks for exposure to lead, safety and indoor air quality, as well as adaptations for elderly or persons with disabilities.”

LEADING HEALTH INDICATORS

• During the 2009-2010 school year, some 46.9 percent of students ate two or more pieces of fruit a day, compared to 39.2 percent during the 2003-2004 session. The authors of the report ask the city to support an early childhood health eating and exercise initiative.
• Between 2002 and 2008, the rate of smoking among all adults decreased to 14 percent, from 17 percent. The report recommends that the city expand tobacco-free zones and offer more programs to help people quit smoking.
• The rate of chlamydia per 100,000 residents in Somerville rose to 361 in 2008, compared to 268 across Massachusetts. The report suggests that public health organizations identify people most at risk for this and other sexually transmitted diseases and find ways to increase prevention and treatment.

Read the report on the  Cambridge Health Alliance’s website — www.challiance.org/comm_affairs/som_health_agenda.shtml.

To get involved with implementing recommendations, contact Lisa Brukilacchio at 617-591-6940 or lbrukilacchio@challiance.org. To order a copy of the book (for cost of printing), contact Paulette Renault-Caragianes at 617-625-6600 or prenaultcaragianes@somervillema.gov.