The percentage of american smokers - Essay Example

Percentage of American Smokers Smoking was possibly encouraged by the Army when machine made cigarettes were issued to soldiers during World War II. It seems to have become fashionable and soon after the War you find women-smokers being accepted socially too. Since the years of the War, the dangerous effects of smoking were discovered and announced starting a slow but sure decrease in the numbers of smokers. However, not before smoking had spread across all age groups form middle school to adult.

Today the latest trends suggest that smoker percentages are lowest since World War II prompting Thomas Glynn of the American Cancer Society to say, “"Weve begun to come full circle on this." iWhile absolute percentages differ, though marginally, all surveys are agreed upon the fact that smokers are definitely in the minority today. The percentage of adults in the United States who smoked declined from 42.4 % in 1965 to 25.5 % in 1990.iiThe National Health Interview Survey of 2006 provide a break-up of smokers as follows:23.

5% men and 18.8% women smoke among the whites.26.1% men and 18.5% women smoke among the blacks.20.1% men and 10.1% women smoke among the Hispanics.16.8% men and 4.6% women smoke among the non-Hispanic Asians.35.6% men and 29.0% women smoke among the American Indians/ Alaska Natives.iiiFurther there seems to be a link between education and smoking with high school dropouts smoking more than those with undergraduate degrees who in turn smoked less than those with graduate degrees.iv