U.S. smoking rate stuck after years of declines

An article from today's Chicago Tribune...

Reuters

November 13, 2009

WASHINGTON

-- Efforts to help smokers kick the habit have stalled in the United States, with hardly any recent change in smoking rates, federal researchers reported Thursday.

Slightly more than 20 percent of the adult population smoked in 2008, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Overall smoking prevalence did not change significantly from 2007 to 2008," federal researchers wrote in the CDC's weekly report on death and disease.

"In 2008, an estimated 20.6 percent (46 million) of U.S. adults were current cigarette smokers; of these, 79.8 percent (36.7 million) smoked every day, and 20.2 percent (9.3 million) smoked some days."

The CDC's Ann Malarcher and colleagues analyzed data from the 2008 National Health Interview Survey of 21,781 adults.

From 1998 to 2008, the number of smokers fell by 3.5 percent, from 24.1 percent to 20.6 percent, with almost all of that decline before 2005.

Smokers tended to have less education, the survey found.

Only 5.7 percent of people with advanced graduate degrees smoked. Meanwhile, 27.5 percent of people with less than a high school diploma did so.

Smokers included more than 41 percent of people who had a General Educational Development certificate in lieu of a high school diploma.

Smokers were defined as having smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their lifetimes, and current smokers were defined as smoking every day or nearly every day.

Congress gave the Food and Drug Administration the power this year to regulate tobacco.

"Legislators in states with high smoking rates must redouble their efforts to increase tobacco excise taxes, use that money to fund comprehensive programs to prevent children from starting to use tobacco and help current smokers quit," American Heart Association Chief Executive Nancy Brown said in a statement.

The American Cancer Society says tobacco use remains the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the U.S., and cigarettes account for about 443,000 premature deaths every year, including 49,400 in nonsmokers.

A study published this month found that smokers who switch to a low-tar, light or mild brand of cigarette will not find it easier to quit and may find it harder.
1,000 people in U.S. take up smoking every day

45%: Segment of smokers who reported they had tried to quit at least once in the past year

SOURCE: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/chi-tc-nw-smoking-1112-1113nov13,0,7440025.story