Even though fewer people smoke, a recent study, published in the March 3 Journal of Epidemiology, said smoking causes half a million deaths in the US each year.
Reuters reported that according to experts who compare the tobacco smoking epidemic to a “smoking gun” the numbers in the study are in line with other such studies around the world. More women died from tobacco smoking than expected. More men than women died of smoking related causes.
The abstract of the study stated, “There were an estimated 291,000 smoking-attributable deaths among men and 229,000 such deaths among women annually in the United States from 2002 through 2006. These figures are generally consistent with, but somewhat higher than, published estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, particularly for women.”
Reuters quoted Dr. Prabhat Jha from the Center for Global Health Research at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto. The study is “an important reminder that this huge epidemic...needs ongoing measurement. We just can’t assume that we know enough about where this epidemic is going,” said Dr. Jha. He was not involved in the study.
The data in the study came from a health survey of the smoking habits of 250,000 smokers throughout the US, Reuters reported.
The Journal of the American Medical Association published a report which said intensity of smoking has to do with mortality. People who smoke more than 20 cigarettes each day are more likely to die.
According to the CDC, “Tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of disease, disability, and death in the United States. Each year, an estimated 443,000 people die prematurely from smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke, and another 8.6 million live with a serious illness caused by smoking.”
The agency believes investments in smoking cessation programs and in tobacco use prevention prevent illness and save lives. It said in a statement, “Evidence-based, statewide tobacco control programs that are comprehensive, sustained, and accountable have been shown to reduce smoking rates, tobacco-related deaths, and diseases caused by smoking.”
Reuters reported that according to experts who compare the tobacco smoking epidemic to a “smoking gun” the numbers in the study are in line with other such studies around the world. More women died from tobacco smoking than expected. More men than women died of smoking related causes.
The abstract of the study stated, “There were an estimated 291,000 smoking-attributable deaths among men and 229,000 such deaths among women annually in the United States from 2002 through 2006. These figures are generally consistent with, but somewhat higher than, published estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, particularly for women.”
Reuters quoted Dr. Prabhat Jha from the Center for Global Health Research at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto. The study is “an important reminder that this huge epidemic...needs ongoing measurement. We just can’t assume that we know enough about where this epidemic is going,” said Dr. Jha. He was not involved in the study.
The data in the study came from a health survey of the smoking habits of 250,000 smokers throughout the US, Reuters reported.
The Journal of the American Medical Association published a report which said intensity of smoking has to do with mortality. People who smoke more than 20 cigarettes each day are more likely to die.
According to the CDC, “Tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of disease, disability, and death in the United States. Each year, an estimated 443,000 people die prematurely from smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke, and another 8.6 million live with a serious illness caused by smoking.”
The agency believes investments in smoking cessation programs and in tobacco use prevention prevent illness and save lives. It said in a statement, “Evidence-based, statewide tobacco control programs that are comprehensive, sustained, and accountable have been shown to reduce smoking rates, tobacco-related deaths, and diseases caused by smoking.”
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