Millions Still Smoke Cigarettes

Many millions of Americans still smoke cigarettes, despite decades of warnings, hundreds of thousands of deaths each year, and millions in health care expenses. According to the CDC, this is the percentage of Americans aged 18 or older who smoke cigarettes...

Total adults: 12.5%

Men: 14.1%

Women: 11.0%

Aged 18 to 24: 7.4%

Aged 25 to 44: 14.1%

Aged 45 to 64: 14.9%

Aged 65-plus: 9.0%

Northeast: 10.4%

Midwest: 15.2%

South: 14.1%

West: 9.0%

Metropolitan counties: 11.4%

Nonmetropolitan counties: 19.0%

High school only: 17.6%

Some college: 14.4%

Associate's degree: 12.7%

Bachelor's degree: 5.6%

Graduate degree: 3.5%

Household income <$35,000: 20.2%

Income $35,000 to $74,999: 14.1%

Income $75,000 to $99,999: 10.5%

Income $100,000 or more: 6.2%

These figures do not include those who smoke other types of tobacco such as e-cigarettes (3.7 percent of adults), cigars (3.5 percent), smokeless tobacco (2.3 percent), pipes (1.1 percent), or two or more tobacco products (3.3 percent). 

Note: Cigarette smokers are defined as those who have smoked 100 or more cigarettes in their lifetime and who currently smoke cigarettes every day or some days.

Source: CDC, Tobacco Product Use among Adults—United States, 2020

High School Seniors Are Taking Fewer Risks—Sort of

In many ways, high school seniors are better behaved than they used to be. The results of the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) show fewer seniors engaging in a number of risky activities. The YRBSS has been tracking the behavior of middle and high school students every two years since 1991, surveying students in public and private schools across the country. Here's a comparison of the behaviors of high school seniors in 2019 with their counterparts in 2009 and 1999...

Percent of high school seniors who engaged in activity, 1999 to 2019

	2019	2009	1999
Drove after drinking*	7.8%	28.2%	37.2%
Currently smoke cigarettes*	9.0	25.2	42.8
Currently drink alcohol*	39.9	51.7	61.7
Currently use marijuana*	28.3	24.6	31.5
Ever had sexual intercourse	56.7	62.3	64.9
Currently sexually active**	42.3	49.1	50.6
Use a computer 3 or more hours per day for something other than school work***	45.5	21.2	–
Watch television 3 or more hours per day***	19.4	–	33.1

Note: – means data not available.

* In past 30 days

** In past 3 months

*** On an average school day

Many fewer high school seniors are smoking cigarettes, with the percentage of current smokers falling from 43 percent in 1999 to just 9 percent in 2019. But 40 percent of 2019 high school seniors reported using e-cigarettes in the past 30 days, making vaping almost as popular as cigarettes were two decades ago.

Many fewer high school seniors report driving after drinking, with the number falling from 37 percent in 1999 to just 8 percent in 2019. But the 59.5 percent majority of 2019 high school seniors say they have texted while driving in the past 30 days, a behavior that can be as dangerous as driving after drinking. 

Nearly half of high school seniors say they use computers (including smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, etc.) for something other than schoolwork for 3 or more hours a day on an average school day. But many fewer high school seniors are spending a lot of time watching television.

Source: CDC, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System 

Most Men 65-Plus Are Current or Former Smokers

Smoking was once the norm for men in the United States. Only 41 percent of men aged 65 or older say they never smoked cigarettes, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The 59 percent majority are current or former smokers.

Cigarette smoking status of men aged 65-plus
Current smoker: 10%
Former smoker: 49%
Never smoker: 41%

Cigarette smoking status of women aged 65-plus
Current smoker: 7%
Former smoker: 31%
Never smoker: 62%

Not surprisingly, health problems are more common among smokers than nonsmokers. A substantial 28 percent of current smokers aged 65 or older report having chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), for example. The figure is a smaller 19 percent among former smokers, and 7 percent for never smokers.

The prevalence of health problems among former smokers depends on how long they smoked. Among former smokers who smoked for 10 or fewer years, only 9 percent have COPD. Among those who smoked for 10 to 25 years, 12 percent have the disease. The share rises to 20 percent among those who smoked for 25 to 40 years and peaks at 33 percent among those who smoked for 40 or more years. Most former smokers had smoked for 25 or more years, NCHS reports, and one in four had smoked for 40 or more years.

"Smoking cessation has been shown to be beneficial at any age," the NCHS concludes. "However, even after quitting smoking, the length of time a person smoked is reflected in current health measures among people aged 65 and over."

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Health of Former Cigarette Smokers Aged 65 and Over: United States, 2018 (PDF)

Marijuana Almost as Popular as Cigarettes

More than one in four Americans (27 percent) smoked something in the past week, according to a Gallup survey. Fifteen percent of adults aged 18 or older smoked cigarettes, 12 percent smoked marijuana, and 8 percent vaped. (Some smoked more than one kind of product.)

Cigarettes are more popular than marijuana among the population as a whole, but marijuana is more popular than cigarettes in some demographic segments...

Young adults: 22 percent of 18-to-29-year-olds smoked marijuana in the past week. This figure greatly exceeds the 14 percent who smoked cigarettes. In every other age group, cigarettes are more popular than marijuana. Young adults are more likely to vape (19 percent) than smoke cigarettes.

College graduates: Smoking marijuana is more popular than cigarettes among college graduates—13 percent have smoked marijuana in the past week versus 9 percent who have smoked cigarettes. Among those with no college education, 20 percent had smoked cigarettes in the past week versus a smaller 13 percent who had smoked marijuana.

Affluent: Those with incomes of $100,000 or more are twice as likely to have smoked marijuana (10 percent) than cigarettes (5 percent) in the past week.

Source: Gallup, Marijuana Use Similar to New Lower Rate of Cigarette Smoking

One in Five Young Adults Vapes

Among Americans aged 18 or older, only 9 percent say they occasionally or regularly vape (use e-cigarettes). But the vaping rate is much higher among young adults, with 20 percent vaping and a smaller 16 percent smoking cigarettes...

Percent who occasionally/regularly vape (or smoke cigarettes)
Aged 18 to 29: 20% (16%)
Aged 30 to 49:   9% (23%)
Aged 50 to 64:   7% (26%)
Aged 65-plus:    0% (10%)

Source: Gallup, Young People Adopt Vaping as their Smoking Rate Plummets