gsthr logo
Quick links to detailed datasheets for United States of America at gsthr.org

Smoking in United States of America

In the United States of America, smoking is allowed but tobacco products should follow some regulations. Under these regulations, health warnings on tobacco packaging including cigarettes are mandatory, the minimum legal age for their sales is 21 years, and there are no federal legal restrictions on smoking in public places. While tobacco advertising is regulated, not all forms of their advertising are banned. An excise tax of 32.16% with a total taxation rate of 37.36% is applied on cigarettes. Cigarettes can legally be sold with authorised documents. They may also be purchased through vending machines as well as through online channels. Importing cigarettes for trade is allowed with an appropriate import license. Despite these control measures, prevalence data show that smoking remains an important public health issue in the United States. There were 39.8 million current smokers in the country in 2024. This represents an overall adult smoking prevalence of 14.1%, with higher prevalence among men (17.1%) than among women (11.1%). In comparison, the overall current smoking prevalence was 12.3% in 2022. The adult daily smoking prevalence was recorded to be 10.01% in 2020. Smoking-related mortality also remains significant in the country. In 2021, smoking resulted in 360,370 deaths, including 216,986 male deaths and 143,383 female deaths. This shows that smoking accounted for 10.38% of all deaths in the United States in 2021, with a higher rate among men (11.9%) than among women (8.7%).

Read articles from United States of America

July 31, 2018 by buffalonews.com

Editorial: Legalize marijuana, but with eyes open

There’s a lot we don’t yet know about the unintended consequences of legalizing marijuana, as a state panel has just recommended: its effect on rates of use, especially among adolescents; whether expanded use will create new dangers on the roads; the impact on companies that will have to worry about liabilities created by employees who are high. Those issues require examination.

Nevertheless, we do know a lot about the consequences of New York’s law as it exists: [...]

July 31, 2018 by indiatimes.com

One addiction to wean you off another? Jury still out on e-cigs

New Delhi: In the United States, 3% of adults regularly use e-cigarettes and 15% have tried them. There is no such data for India, but a random survey of vape shops – e-cigarettes are also called vapes because they release nicotine in the form of vapour — shows youngsters in the capital warming up to the device that simulates the experience of tobacco inhalation.

“Till two years ago, vapes were hardly known and we barely managed to sell a device or two in a week,” [...]

 

July 30, 2018 by inquirer.com

What are synthetic cannabinoids?

Synthetic cannabinoids are man-made, mind-altering chemicals that some users turn to as an alternative to marijuana. They are either sprayed on dried, shredded plant material so they can be smoked or sold as liquids to be vaporized and inhaled in e-cigarettes and other devices, [...]

The little packets of “fake weed” [...] can be purchased online as incense or natural herbal products. The unregulated substances are intended to produce the same effects as illegal drugs like marijuana.

July 30, 2018 by nj.com

N.J. did good to ban smoking on beaches. We can do more | Opinion

Nothing is more Jersey than the Jersey Shore--and it's about to get healthier, safer, and cleaner, now that Governor Phil Murphy has signed a new law banning smoking at public beaches and parks.

This law will make it easier for all New Jerseyans and the millions of people who visit our beaches every summer to enjoy smoke-free outdoor environments--an opportunity that not everyone shares equally because of where they live or work.

July 27, 2018 by medicalxpress.com

Warning label may have misled tobacco consumers for over 30 years

In 1986, the U.S. government passed legislation requiring a series of warnings for smokeless tobacco products, one of which advised "This product is not a safe alternative to cigarettes." That warning, however, obscured an important distinction—that cigarettes are much more harmful to health than smokeless tobacco products—and over the 30-plus years since, the American public has mostly been unaware that smokeless tobacco is much less harmful than cigarettes, [...]

July 27, 2018 by natlawreview.com

Senators Urge FDA to Get Tough on Flavored Vaping Products

Fourteen senators, including Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), have sent a letter to FDA criticizing the agency for what it characterizes as lax enforcement that has allowed children to get addicted to flavored vape products in recent years. In particular, the letter calls out flavors like gummy bear, cotton candy, peanut butter cup, and cookies ‘n cream as examples of flavors that appeal to children. [...]

July 26, 2018 by healthline.com

90 Percent of Smokers in Study Couldn’t Quit After Vaping for One Year

While federal regulators have not approved vaping as a smoking cessation aid, it is nonetheless marketed by some as a life-saving strategy for smokers trying to quit.

Testimonials from people who have successfully switched from smoking combustible tobacco to vaping are emotionally charged.

“If it wasn’t for vaping, I would have died from smoking cigarettes. Vaping has given me the opportunity to live longer and enjoy my children,” one such testimonial reads.

July 26, 2018 by reuters.com

Massachusetts to probe e-cigarette maker Juul over sales to minors

Massachusetts is investigating e-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc and two online retailers to determine whether they violated state law by failing to prevent minors from buying their products, the state’s attorney general said on Tuesday. The probe by Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey comes as the fast-growing Silicon Valley e-cigarette start-up has faced increased scrutiny due the popularity of Juul’s products with teenagers.

July 24, 2018 by wired.com

USERS SUE JUUL FOR ADDICTING THEM TO NICOTINE

JUUL LABS, THE San Francisco-based e-cigarette company, is under pressure from parents, schools, public health advocates, lawmakers, and the Food and Drug Administration for its popularity with younger users, who have gravitated to Juul’s discrete rechargeable vaping device and nicotine pods in flavors like mango and fruit medley. Now come the lawsuits. Since April, consumers have filed at least three complaints against Juul. [...] 

July 23, 2018 by reviewjournal.com

Tight margins, FDA challenge vaping companies in Nevada, US

A February report by Wells Fargo predicted the U.S. e-cigarette market will hit $5.5 billion this year, a 25 percent growth rate from last year.

About 70 percent of sales have come from rechargeable liquid nicotine refills.

The researchers credited industry growth to advances in the technology customers use to vape. Wells Fargo predicts consumers will eventually shift to other products that the industry markets as less harmful than tobacco cigarettes, including cigarettes that heat tobacco instead of burning it.