A new study revealed that the anti-smoking campaigns and tobacco control strategies were able to save eight million lives for 50 years.
The analysis pertains to the Smoking and Health, a report made by Surgeon General, which discussed the dangers of smoking tobacco, including exposing its users to lung cancer. The report was published in 1964 and since then, smoking rates have been steadily decreasing over the years.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed that the smoking rates back then was 59 percent but fell to 42 percent in 1964, after the publication of the report. Finally, it dropped to 18 percent in 2012.
"Tobacco control has been described, accurately, as one of the great public health successes of the 20th century," CDC director Thomas Frieden wrote in an editorial.
Furthermore, the analysis presented that people who decided to avoid or quit smoking were able to increase their life expectancy by 20 years. Men in their forties showed an average life expectancy increase of eight years while it is 5 ½ years for women.
On another report in USA Today, an analysis made by Yale University School of Public Health led by Theodore Holford found that 18 million Americans have died of tobacco-related diseases. Furthermore, according to Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, 100 million deaths worldwide were linked to tobacco use and exposure. About 443,000 Americans die every year due to tobacco-related illnesses.
Frieden considered smoking as still a big issue when it comes to public health. One-third of those who do not smoke are still at risk due to exposure to second-hand smoke. The media is also perpetuating smoking through TV ads and movies. Furthermore, taxes for tobacco are still very low in some parts of the country, making cigarettes affordable to adults and kids.
The study was published in the January 7 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
