Rates of cigarette smoking among young U.S. adults have drastically declined since 2001, new data show.
Rates of cigarette smoking among young Americans have fallen from 35 percent to 12 percent over the past 20 years, according to new results of a Gallup poll.
The decline among those aged 18 through 29 was also more than double that of any other age group measured and puts young adults as the second least likely age group to smoke cigarettes. The nation’s oldest adults — those over age 65 — are the least likely to smoke cigarettes, with just 8 percent having done so in 2022.
Since the survey’s start in 2001, young adults smoked cigarettes at higher rates than any other age group through 2012.
Historically, cigarette smoking has also been closely linked with educational attainment, as young adults with a college degree are much less likely to smoke than those who have not graduated college.
Data show the decline in cigarette smoking rates has been greater among those who have not graduated college, from 39 percent to 14 percent, than those with a degree, from 17 percent to 7 percent. Similar declines were documented among young men and women alike. Get the full story here.
