Tobacco use leading cause of death
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Tobacco use remains the leading cause of death and disease in the United States, accounting for more than 440,000 deaths each year. Approximately 160,000 of those deaths are due to lung cancer alone; the other 280,000 deaths are due to other tobacco related diseases. According to the American Lung Association, lung cancer causes more deaths than the next three most common cancers combined (colon, breast and pancreatic). An estimated 159,260 Americans are expected to die from lung cancer in 2014, accounting for approximately 27 percent of all cancer deaths.
An estimated 42.1 million people, or 18.1% of all adults (aged 18 years or older), in the United States smoke cigarettes. Overall smoking prevalence declined from 2005 (20.9%) to 2012 (18.1%). “Tobacco control has been called one of the most important health triumphs of the past 50 years. …although we have come a long way, there is still much more to be done,” Steven A. Schroeder, M.D., of the University of California, San Francisco. Even with the decline in adults who smoke in the U.S., there are still an estimated 14 million smoking attributed medical conditions today.
Across Wisconsin, agencies and coalitions partner with local law enforcement in using a state-wide campaign, called WI Wins, to support the decline of tobacco related diseases. WI Wins uses positive reinforcement to reduce illegal tobacco sales to minors. A program of the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Tobacco Prevention and Control Program, WI Wins contracts with local partners to conduct county-wide investigations of retailer compliance with the law. It congratulates local clerks who do not sell tobacco to youth, while educating those who would. This approach creates community pride by reducing youth access to tobacco products and providing youth a chance to make a difference in their community. Local initiatives also include retailer education and training, media outreach, and community education.
The WI Wins contractor for Dunn, Pepin and Taylor Counties is Arbor Place, Inc., based in Menomonie.
Sources:
Adult Cigarette Smoking in the United States: Current Estimates. (2014, February 14). Retrieved December 22, 2014, from http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/adult_data/cig_smoking/
Lung Cancer Fact Sheet – American Lung Association. (n.d.). Retrieved December 22, 2014, from http://www.lung.org/lung-disease/lung-cancer/resources/facts-figures/lung-cancer-fact-sheet.html
Study estimates 14 million smoking-attributable major medical conditions in US. (n.d.). Retrieved December 22, 2014, from http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-10/tjnj-se1101014.php
