Fewer Americans Than Ever Are Smoking. Will Vaping Take Its Place?

Tobacco use in the U.S. is changing, according to new data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The number of American adults who smoke fell to a new low in 2018, while e-cigarette use continued to climb. About a fifth of American adults used some type of tobacco product in 2018, according to the data. Cigarettes were the most popular, used by 13.7% of adults. That’s a small decrease from 14% the year before, and another record low for the U.S., which has seen a two-thirds decline in smoking since 1965. Meanwhile, e-cigarette use rose from 2.8% of U.S. adults in 2017 to 3.2% in 2018. Use of smokeless tobacco also increased a bit (from 2.1% to 2.4% of adults), while cigar and pipe use remained essentially unchanged, at 3.9% and 1% of adults. Clearly, traditional combustible cigarettes are still much more popular than e-cigarettes, which heat and vaporize liquid nicotine rather than burning tobacco. About 34 million American adults smoke cigarettes, while only about 8 million vape. Nonetheless, the data shows a clear trend: more Americans are ditching cigarettes, and more are picking up alternative tobacco products, thanks in part to massively popular companies like Juul. Whether the people beginning to vape are also the ones quitting smoking is the million-dollar question. Proponents say e-cigarettes are less dangerous than cigarettes because they contain fewer carcinogenic substances and produce fewer harmful byproducts than cigarettes&mdash...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized embargoed study public health Source Type: news