ATLANTA -- A national survey released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) showed the smoking rate for adults fell to 15.1% last year (down from 16.8% in 2014), marking the biggest one-year decline in more than 20 years. As reported by the New York Times, the 1.7% decrease documented in the CDC’s National Health Interview Survey was well over the 1% (or less) annual decreases the United States has historically seen.
In fact, Brian King of the CDC said 1993 was the last time the smoking rate decreased at this rate, falling 1.5% between 1992 and 1993.
“The trend of the last couple years is remarkable, particularly the last two years,” Kenneth E. Warner, a professor of public health at the University of Michigan, told the New York Times. “We have not seen anything like this for a very long time.”
While the CDC survey did not provide theories for the increased rate of cigarette use, Warner said it could be due to a combination of federal anti-smoking campaigns and an increase in potentially reduced-harm alternatives.
“It is possible that a significant number of smokers are getting off of cigarettes by using alternative nicotine sources like e-cigarettes,” he said.
The National Health Interview Study used estimates of data taken from interviews on health-related issues, such as alcohol consumption, health-insurance coverage and obesity. Cigarette-smoking adults were defined as someone who had smoked more than 100 cigarettes in their lifetime and currently smoke every day or some days. Warner acknowledged some federal studies show a higher adult-smoking rate, potentially due to a difference in the definition of cigarette-smoking adults.
Still, trends across-the-board show a declining smoking rate.
“The bottom line on these numbers is that they are very encouraging,” Warner said.
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