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State Health Compare

Percent of adults who have smoked 100 or more cigarettes in their lifetime and who currently smoke some days or every day

Measure Overview

Despite successes of widespread information campaigns and policy measures to prevent and reduce tobacco use, millions of U.S. adults continue to smoke tobacco cigarettes. Smoking causes a number of diseases such as lung cancer, stroke, and diabetes, and increases the risk of tuberculosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and other adverse health conditions. Ongoing surveillance of adult smoking rates in the U.S. is a critical step in identifying populations more prone to smoking and can help inform efforts to eradicate smoking altogether.

State Health Compare presents annual, state-level rates of adults who smoke traditional tobacco cigarettes based on findings from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). These rates can be broken down by education level (less than high school, high school graduate, some college/associate’s degree, or bachelor’s degree or higher) and race/ethnicity (White, Hispanic/Latino, African-American/Black, Asian/Pacific Islander, or Other/Multiple Races). BRFSS defines smoking as individuals who smoked 100 or more cigarettes in their lifetime and who currently smoke some days or every day.

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