Worldwide, about 1.35 billion people smoke. The world population statistic in 2009 stood at 6.8 billion meaning almost 20% of the world’s population smokes.
Smoking Statistics in the United States
- Caucasians – 21.4% of all Caucasian adults smoke – compared to a few years ago when 26% of Caucasian men and 22% of women smoked
- Black or African Americans – 19.8% of all Black or African Americans smoke – compared to a few years ago when 29% of African American men and 21% of women smoked
- Hispanics – 13.3% of all Hispanics smoke – compared to a few years ago when 24% of all Hispanic men and 12% of women smoked
- Asian and Pacific Islanders – 9.6% of all Asians smoke – compared to a few years ago when 24% of all Asian men smoked and 7% of women smoked
- American Indians and Alaska Natives – 36.4% of American Indians and Alaska natives smoke – compared to a few years ago when 41% of all American Indians/Alaska native men and 41% of women smoked
Teen Smoking Statistics in the United States
- American Teens (those in high school) – 25% of all high schoolers (teens) in the United States smoke
- 1,000 teens become new smokers every day in the United States
Main Cigarette Ingredients You Should Know About
- Aminobiphenyl – a human carcinogen
- Arsenic – inorganic arsenic can cause you to experience a sore throat, irritated lungs, nausea, vomiting, decreased production of red and white blood cells, abnormal heart rhythm, damage to blood vessels and a sensation of pins and needles in hands and feet
- Benzene – breathing benzene can cause drowsiness, dizziness, rapid heart rate, headaches, tremors, confusion, unconsciousness, harm to bone marrow and a decrease in the production of red blood cells
- Chromium – a human carcinogen
- 2-Naphthylamine – a human carcinogen
- Nickel – can cause asthma attacks, chronic bronchitis, and reduced lung function
- Vinyl chloride – dizziness and sleepiness
- N-Nitrosodiethylamine – a human carcinogen
- N-Nitrosopyrrolidine – a human carcinogen
- N-Nitrosodiethanolamine – a human carcinogen
- Cadmium – possibly a human carcinogen
- Benzo[a]pyrene – can damage red blood cells
- Ammonia – can cause coughing and irritation to the nose and throat
- Acrolein – can cause irritation and damage to the lungs
- Pyridine – can cause headache, giddiness, drowsiness, increased heart rate and rapid breathing
- Catechol – can cause cough, burning sensation, and labored breathing
- Formaldehyde – can cause irritation to your nose, eyes, skin and throat
- Acetone – can irritate your nose, lungs, throat and eyes
- Hydrogen cyanide – can cause headache, dizziness, weakness, nausea and vomiting
- Nicotine – an addictive drug
- Carbon monoxide – enters the lungs and displaces oxygen from the bloodstream
- Toluene – can cause drowsiness, confusion, weakness, drunken-type actions, memory loss, nausea, loss of appetite, hearing loss and color vision loss
- Hydroquinone – can cause irritation to the eyes and respiratory system
- Carbon disulfide – can change breathing patterns and induce chest pains
- Lead – can cause weakness in your fingers, wrists and ankles and mind, can negatively affect your memory, can affect blood cell production and disrupt the male reproductive system
- Phenol – can lead to liver damage, diarrhea, dark urine and hemolytic anemia.
Courtesy of Onlineschools.org
Thank you for these facts and compelling illustrations. I hear too often that the business of persuading teens and others to smoke has faded away. There may be some tactical changes, but the cigarette industry is as determined as ever to build a growing market for tobacco products even if they must devastate the poorest and most vulnerable throughout the world.
Thanks again for the well made effort to perceive the extent of damage for our future generations. I have note the facts and figures to distribute it to my local educational institutions to build up a local anti-tobacco campaign.
I would love to have such a statistical database for India only. I’m afraid more fearce facts would come out.