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Fast Facts

Morbidity and Mortality

Tobacco use leads to disease and disability.

  • Smoking causes cancer, heart disease, stroke, and lung diseases (including emphysema, bronchitis, and chronic airway obstruction).1
  • For every person who dies from a smoking-related disease, 20 more people suffer with at least one serious illness from smoking.2

Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death.

  • Worldwide, tobacco use causes more than 5 million deaths per year, and current trends show that tobacco use will cause more than 8 million deaths annually by 2030.3
  • In the United States, tobacco use is responsible for about one in five deaths annually (i.e., about 443,000 deaths per year, and an estimated 49,000 of these smoking-related deaths are the result of secondhand smoke exposure).1
  • On average, smokers die 13 to 14 years earlier than nonsmokers.4

Costs and Expenditures

The cigarette industry spends billions each year on advertising and promotions.5

  • $9.94 billion total spent in 2008
  • $27 million spent a day in 2008

Tobacco use costs the United States billions of dollars each year.

  • Cigarette smoking costs more than $193 billion (i.e., $97 billion in lost productivity plus $96 billion in health care expenditures).1
  • Secondhand smoke costs more than $10 billion (i.e., health care expenditures, morbidity, and mortality).6

State spending on tobacco control does not meet CDC-recommended levels.7,8

  • Collectively, states have billions of dollars available to them—from tobacco excise taxes and tobacco industry legal settlements—for preventing and controlling tobacco use. States currently use a very small percentage of these funds for tobacco control programs.
  • In 2011, states will collect $25.3 billion from tobacco taxes and legal settlements, but states are spending only 2% of the $25.3 billion on tobacco control programs.
  • Investing only about 15% (i.e., $3.7 billion) of the $25.3 billion would fund every state tobacco control program at CDC-recommended levels.

Tobacco Use in the United States

Percentage of U.S. adults who were current smokers in 2010:9

  • 19.3% of all adults (45.3 million people)
  • 31.4% non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native
  • 25.9% non-Hispanic multiple race
  • 21.0% non-Hispanic white
  • 20.6% non-Hispanic black
  • 12.5% Hispanic
  • 9.2% non-Hispanic Asian

NOTES:
–Adult is defined as 18 years of age or older.
–Current smokers are defined as persons who reported smoking at least 100 cigarettes during their lifetime and who, at the time of interview, reported smoking every day or some days.
–Percentage for Asian American adults does not include Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders.


Thousands of young people begin smoking every day.10

  • Each day, more than 3,800 persons younger than 18 years of age smoke their first cigarette.
  • Each day, about 1,000 persons younger than 18 years of age begin smoking on a daily basis.

Many adult smokers want to quit smoking.11

  • Approximately 69% of smokers want to quit completely.
  • Approximately 52% of smokers attempted to quit in 2010.

NOTES:
–See CDC's Smoking Cessation fact sheet for more information.
–"Attempted to quit" is defined as smokers who reported that they stopped smoking for more than 1 day in the past 12 months because they were trying to quit smoking. 

References

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Smoking-Attributable Mortality, Years of Potential Life Lost, and Productivity Losses—United States, 2000–2004. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 2008;57(45):1226–8 [accessed 2012 Jun 7].
  2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cigarette Smoking-Attributable Morbidity—United States, 2000. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 2003;52(35):842–4 [accessed 2012 Jun 7].
  3. World Health Organization. WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic, 2009. Exit Notification Geneva: World Health Organization, 2008 [accessed 2012 Jun 7].
  4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Annual Smoking-Attributable Mortality, Years of Potential Life Lost, and Productivity Losses—United States, 1995–1999. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 2002;51(14):300–3 [accessed 2012 Jun 7].
  5. Federal Trade Commission. Cigarette Report for 2007 and 2008. Exit Notification (PDF–130.44 KB) Washington: Federal Trade Commission, 2011 [accessed 2012 Jun 7].
  6. Behan DF, Eriksen MP, Lin Y. Economic Effects of Environmental Tobacco Smoke Report. Exit Notification Schaumburg, IL: Society of Actuaries; 2005 [accessed 2012 Jun 7].
  7. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs—2007. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2007. [accessed 2012 Jun 7].
  8. Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. A Broken Promise to Our Children: The 1998 State Tobacco Settlement Twelve Years Later. Exit Notification (PDF–2.91 MB). Washington: Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, 2010 [accessed 2012 Aug 20].
  9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vital Signs: Current Cigarette Smoking Among Adults Aged ≥ 18 Years—United States, 2005–2010. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 2011;60(35):1207–12 [accessed 2012 Jun 7].
  10. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration. Results from the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings. Exit Notification Rockville (MD): Office of Applied Studies [accessed 2012 Jun 7].
  11. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Quitting Smoking Among Adults—United States, 2001–2010. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report [serial online] 2011;60(44):1513–19 [accessed 2012 Jun 7].

For Further Information

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Office on Smoking and Health
E-mail: tobaccoinfo@cdc.gov
Phone: 1-800-CDC-INFO

Media Inquiries: Contact CDC's Office on Smoking and Health press line at 770-488-5493.

 

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