Sharp increases in adult consumption of pipe tobacco, used for roll-your-own cigarettes, and cigarette-like cigars since 2008 have offset declines in total cigarette consumption, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Although total cigarette consumption continued an 11-year downward trend with a 2.5% decline from 2010 to 2011, dramatic increases in use of non-cigarette smoked tobacco products have slowed the long decline in overall consumption of smoked tobacco products, according to the report.
From 2000 to 2011, the largest increases were in consumption of pipe tobacco (482%) and large cigars (233%). The increase in cigars was largely due to tobacco manufacturers’ move to add weight to many small cigars, allowing them to be classified as large cigars and avoid higher taxes and regulation, while at the same time retaining a size and shape similar to cigarettes, according to the CDC.
According to the report, total consumption of all smoked tobacco products (including cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco, pipe tobacco and cigars) declined by 27.5% between 2000 and 2011. However, decline was minimal (0.8%) between 2010 and 2011. Despite the overall decline, the consumption of non-cigarette smoked tobacco products increased by 123% during the 11-year span.
“The rise in cigar smoking, which other studies show is a growing problem among youth and young adults, is cause for alarm,” Tim McAfee, director of the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health, said in a news release. “The Surgeon General’s Report released this past March (http://Nurse.com/Article/YouthTobaccoUse) shows that getting young people to either quit smoking or never start smoking is the key to ending the tobacco epidemic, because 99% of all smokers start before they’re 26 years old.”
The study, “Consumption of Cigarettes and Combustible Tobacco — United States, 2000-2011,” uses Treasury Department data to calculate consumption for all forms of smoked tobacco products. The CDC previously had not calculated consumption estimates, instead depending upon consumption data published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which USDA stopped reporting in 2007.
The report’s authors noted a disparity between consumption of cigarettes and other forms of smoked tobacco stemming from a lower federal excise tax on pipe tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco. The difference led to a dramatic increase in the sale of pipe tobacco used to make roll-your-own cigarettes, a lower-priced alternative to manufactured cigarettes. The Transportation and Student Loan Interest Rate bill, signed into law in July, contains provisions that could limit the advantage of this price difference, according to the CDC.
The difference in manufacturing and marketing restrictions between cigarettes and cigars also is a factor in the disparity. Although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration prohibits the use of flavoring or descriptors such as “light” or “low tar” in cigarettes, no such restrictions exist for cigars and pipe tobacco.
Tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States, according to the CDC. The health consequences of tobacco use include heart disease, multiple types of cancer, lung disease, adverse reproductive effects and the worsening of chronic health conditions.
Cigarette use and exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke kill an estimated 443,000 Americans a year, according to the CDC, and for every death, 20 people live with a smoking-related disease. In addition to the cost in human life, cigarette smoking has been estimated to cost $193 billion annually in direct healthcare expenses and lost productivity.
The study appears in the Aug. 3 issue of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. To read it, visit http://1.usa.gov/MT8EwL.
SAMHSA report
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released its own report, which shows that all states and the District of Columbia have continued to meet their goals of curtailing sales of tobacco to consumers under age 18.
To further reduce tobacco use among youth and young adults, the 2012 Surgeon General’s Report recommends making tobacco products less affordable, running hard-hitting mass media campaigns and adequately funding evidence-based tobacco control and prevention programs.
To read a PDF summary of the SAMHSA report, visit http://1.usa.gov/NcTAFc.
Although total cigarette consumption continued an 11-year downward trend with a 2.5% decline from 2010 to 2011, dramatic increases in use of non-cigarette smoked tobacco products have slowed the long decline in overall consumption of smoked tobacco products, according to the report.
From 2000 to 2011, the largest increases were in consumption of pipe tobacco (482%) and large cigars (233%). The increase in cigars was largely due to tobacco manufacturers’ move to add weight to many small cigars, allowing them to be classified as large cigars and avoid higher taxes and regulation, while at the same time retaining a size and shape similar to cigarettes, according to the CDC.
According to the report, total consumption of all smoked tobacco products (including cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco, pipe tobacco and cigars) declined by 27.5% between 2000 and 2011. However, decline was minimal (0.8%) between 2010 and 2011. Despite the overall decline, the consumption of non-cigarette smoked tobacco products increased by 123% during the 11-year span.
“The rise in cigar smoking, which other studies show is a growing problem among youth and young adults, is cause for alarm,” Tim McAfee, director of the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health, said in a news release. “The Surgeon General’s Report released this past March (http://Nurse.com/Article/YouthTobaccoUse) shows that getting young people to either quit smoking or never start smoking is the key to ending the tobacco epidemic, because 99% of all smokers start before they’re 26 years old.”
The study, “Consumption of Cigarettes and Combustible Tobacco — United States, 2000-2011,” uses Treasury Department data to calculate consumption for all forms of smoked tobacco products. The CDC previously had not calculated consumption estimates, instead depending upon consumption data published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which USDA stopped reporting in 2007.
The report’s authors noted a disparity between consumption of cigarettes and other forms of smoked tobacco stemming from a lower federal excise tax on pipe tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco. The difference led to a dramatic increase in the sale of pipe tobacco used to make roll-your-own cigarettes, a lower-priced alternative to manufactured cigarettes. The Transportation and Student Loan Interest Rate bill, signed into law in July, contains provisions that could limit the advantage of this price difference, according to the CDC.
The difference in manufacturing and marketing restrictions between cigarettes and cigars also is a factor in the disparity. Although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration prohibits the use of flavoring or descriptors such as “light” or “low tar” in cigarettes, no such restrictions exist for cigars and pipe tobacco.
Tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States, according to the CDC. The health consequences of tobacco use include heart disease, multiple types of cancer, lung disease, adverse reproductive effects and the worsening of chronic health conditions.
Cigarette use and exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke kill an estimated 443,000 Americans a year, according to the CDC, and for every death, 20 people live with a smoking-related disease. In addition to the cost in human life, cigarette smoking has been estimated to cost $193 billion annually in direct healthcare expenses and lost productivity.
The study appears in the Aug. 3 issue of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. To read it, visit http://1.usa.gov/MT8EwL.
SAMHSA report
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released its own report, which shows that all states and the District of Columbia have continued to meet their goals of curtailing sales of tobacco to consumers under age 18.
To further reduce tobacco use among youth and young adults, the 2012 Surgeon General’s Report recommends making tobacco products less affordable, running hard-hitting mass media campaigns and adequately funding evidence-based tobacco control and prevention programs.
To read a PDF summary of the SAMHSA report, visit http://1.usa.gov/NcTAFc.
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