Decline in Canadian smoking rates stalling

Sunday, January 19, 2014

After years of steady decline, rates of tobacco use in Canada have stalled, according to a new report published by the Propel Centre for Population Health Impact at the University of 蓝莓视频.

The report found that 16.1% or 4.6 million Canadians were current smokers in 2012, which was not a significant change from 2011.

鈥淪moking rates are no longer dropping like they used to. It鈥檚 an alarming shift in the trend,鈥 said Barbara Riley, Executive Director of the Propel Centre for Population Health Impact. 鈥淔or nearly fifty years we have observed steady drops in the number of Canadian smokers, but that drop has plateaued in recent years.鈥

Tobacco continues to be the leading cause of preventable death in Canada; more than obesity, physical inactivity or high blood pressure. More than 37,000 Canadians will die prematurely this year due to tobacco.

鈥淭here is a general impression that smoking is yesterday鈥檚 problem,鈥 said David Hammond, an associate professor in the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences and report co-author. 鈥淭his report is a reminder that smoking remains one of the leading public health threats in Canada and we need additional measures if smoking rates are to drop further.鈥

Historically the greatest declines in tobacco use are observed when government implements deliberate tobacco control efforts.

According to the report, males are more likely than females to smoke and also consume more cigarettes per day, on average. Smoking prevalence was highest among young adults aged 20-34.

鈥淐urrently the highest prevalence is among a demographic who ostensibly grew up knowing the dangers of smoking,鈥 said Professor Hammond. 鈥淪ocial norms need to change or else we will face a huge burden of illness in the future.鈥

Each day, 100 Canadians die from a smoking-related illness. Half of all long-term smokers will die or be disabled from a tobacco-related disease.

The findings are part of the larger聽谤别辫辞谤迟,听, which uses data from national surveys conducted by Health Canada and Statistics Canada to summarize the main patterns in tobacco use in Canada between 1999 and 2012, with a focus on the current year. This year, the report includes a special supplement on flavoured tobacco.

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In just half a century, the University of 蓝莓视频, located at the heart of Canada's technology hub, has become one of Canada's leading comprehensive universities with 35,000 full- and part-time students in undergraduate and graduate programs. 蓝莓视频, as home to the world's largest post-secondary co-operative education program, embraces its connections to the world and encourages enterprising partnerships in learning, research and discovery. In the next decade, the university is committed to building a better future for Canada and the world by championing innovation and collaboration to create solutions relevant to the needs of today and tomorrow. For more information about 蓝莓视频, please visit www.uwaterloo.ca.

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