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News
Cigarette
Sales
Drop 52 Percent, but Teens Still at Risk
Posted 10 March
2010
Iowans are smoking
less, though young people continue to be at risk for starting. That’s
according to a report released today by the Iowa Department of Public
Health (IDPH).
Conducted by the University of Northern Iowa’s Center for Behavioral
Research, the 2009 Tobacco Control Progress Report shows that Iowa and
the state health department have made a number of advances in reducing
smoking since 2000. Most recently, the report finds there has been a
dramatic decrease in cigarette consumption in Iowa. Data from the Iowa
Department of Revenue show that cigarette sales in Iowa remained steady
from 2000 to 2006. Since that time, however, per capita consumption of
cigarettes has plummeted from 112 to 54 in 2009.
“The fact that Iowans are smoking half as many cigarettes now is
clearly attributable to the $1 cigarette excise tax in 2007 and the
2008 Smokefree Air Act,” said Cathy Callaway, chair of the Iowa Tobacco
Use Prevention & Control Commission. “The importance of policies
like these in improving health and saving lives cannot be
underestimated.”
Unfortunately, efforts to reduce tobacco use among young Iowans have
slowed in the past few years. Despite impressive declines in youth
smoking in Iowa since 2000, the report shows that success has slowed.
For example, cigarette use among high school students (at 19.9 percent)
in 2008 was roughly the same level it was in 2004 (19.5 percent). Among
middle school students, use was down only slightly from 3.6 percent in
2006 to 2.8 percent in 2008.
“It’s important to point out that awareness of Iowa’s youth-led tobacco
counter-marketing campaign, JEL (Just Eliminate Lies), fell during this
period,” Callaway said. “Studies show there’s a direct correlation
between exposure to state-sponsored anti-tobacco advertisements and
anti-smoking attitudes, beliefs and smoking prevalence. Simply put, the
fewer ads JEL produces, the lower the awareness among children. That’s
a major contributor to the limited success we’re seeing in the JEL
program’s goal to prevent tobacco use among youth.”
Among high school students, 85 percent had heard of JEL in 2004. Four
years later, however, that number dropped to 61 percent. The decrease
in awareness was even more dramatic among middle school students, as it
decreased from 54 percent in 2004 to 30 percent in 2008.
Data from more than 60 sources were reviewed in producing the Iowa 2009
Tobacco Progress Report. For more information, visit www.idph.state.ia.us/tobacco
and look under “Tobacco Program Evaluations and Progress Reports.”
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