Health promotion: Smoking control.
Cigarette smoking is the largest single preventable cause of illness and premature death in the United States. It is the major single cause of cancer mortality in the United States and is a causal factor for coronary heart disease and arteriosclerotic peripheral vascular disease; is associated with increased risk of coronary atherosclerosis; and is the most important cause of chronic obstructive lung disease. Cigarette smoking increases the risk of bladder, pancreatic, and renal cancer, and peptic ulcer disease. Maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy causes: retarded fetal growth; an increased risk for spontaneous abortion, fetal death, and neonatal death; and, possibly, slight impairment of growth and development during early childhood. Cigarette smoking acts synergistically with oral contraceptives to increases the risk for coronary heart disease and some forms of cerebrovascular disease; with alcohol to increase the risk of cancer of the larynx, oral cavity, and esophagus; with asbestos and some other occupationally encountered substances to increase the likelihood of cancer of the lung and larynx; and with other coronary risk factors such as hypercholesteremia to enhance cardiovascular risk. Smoking is the major identifiable cause of residential fire deaths and injuries as well as a contributor to accidental injuries. Cigarette smokers have a 70 percent higher overall death rate than nonsmokers, and tobacco is associated with an estimate in excess of 300,000 premature deaths a year. It is estimated that smoking contributes to as many as 225,000 deaths from coronary heart disease, the major cause of death among men and women in the United States; more than 100,000 deaths from cancers; and more than 20,000 deaths from chronic obstructive lung disease. Another 10 million Americans currently suffer from debilitating chronic disease caused by smoking. But substantial progress has been made since the release of the first Surgeon General's Report in 1964. More than 30 million smokers have quit since 1964 and the proportion of adult smokers has declined from about 42 percent in 1965 to approximately one-third today. Adult per capita consumption of cigarettes declined temporarily in 1953, 1954, 1964 and 1968-70, and the rate of decline has accelerated since 1977. Teenage smoking, particularly among adolescent girls, appears to be declining.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006284:Health Plan Implementation; D006285:Health Planning / Q000639:trends*; D006292:Health Priorities / Q000639:trends*; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012306:Risk; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D014481:United States; D014483:United States Dept. of Health and Human Services