19th June 2025

NEW YORK — U.S. cigarette smoking dropped to a different all-time low final 12 months, with 1 in 9 adults saying they have been present people who smoke, in accordance with authorities survey knowledge launched Thursday. In the meantime, digital cigarette use rose, to about 1 in 17 adults.

The preliminary findings from the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention are based mostly on survey responses from greater than 27,000 adults.

Cigarette smoking is a threat issue for lung most cancers, coronary heart illness, and stroke, and it’s lengthy been thought-about the main reason for preventable demise.

Within the mid-1960s, 42% of U.S. adults have been people who smoke. The speed has been steadily dropping for many years, as a result of cigarette taxes, tobacco product value hikes, smoking bans and adjustments within the social acceptability of lighting up in public.

Final 12 months, the share of grownup people who smoke dropped to about 11%, down from about 12.5% in 2020 and 2021. The survey findings generally are revised after additional evaluation, and CDC is predicted to launch remaining 2021 knowledge quickly.

Learn Extra: 7 Methods to Hold Your Mind Sharp As You Age

E-cigarette use rose to almost 6% final 12 months, from about 4.5% the 12 months earlier than, in accordance with survey knowledge.

The rise in e-cigarette use considerations Dr. Jonathan Samet, dean of the Colorado Faculty of Public Well being. Nicotine dependancy has its personal well being implications, together with threat of hypertension and a narrowing of the arteries, in accordance with the American Coronary heart Affiliation.

“I feel that smoking will proceed to ebb downwards, however whether or not the prevalence of nicotine dependancy will drop, given the rise of digital merchandise, isn’t clear,” mentioned Samet, who has been a contributing creator to U.S. Surgeon Normal reviews on smoking and well being for nearly 4 a long time.

Smoking and vaping charges are nearly reversed for teenagers. Solely about 2% of highschool college students have been smoking conventional cigarettes final 12 months, however about 14% have been utilizing e-cigarettes, in accordance with different CDC knowledge.

Extra Should-Reads From TIME


Contact us at letters@time.com.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.