Health Effects of Smoking

Smoking is the number one cause of preventable disease and death worldwide. Smoking-related diseases claim more than 480,000 lives in the U.S. each year. Smoking costs the U.S. at least $289 billion each year, including at least $151 billion in lost productivity and $130 billion in direct healthcare expenditures.¹

Key Facts about Smoking

• Cigarette smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, at least 69 of which are known to cause cancer.² Smoking is directly responsible for approximately 90 percent of lung cancer deaths and approximately 80 percent of deaths caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including emphysema and chronic bronchitis.¹
• Among adults who have ever smoked daily, 78% had smoked their first cigarette by the time they were 18 years of age, and 94% had by age 21.³
• Among current smokers, 73% of their diagnosed smoking-related conditions are chronic lung diseases. Even among smokers who have quit, chronic lung disease still accounts for 50% of smoking-related conditions.⁴
• Smoking harms nearly every organ in the body, and is a main cause of lung cancer and COPD. It also is a cause of coronary heart disease, stroke and a host of other cancers and diseases.¹See more of the health effects caused by smoking.

Smoking Rates among Adults & Youth

• In 2017, an estimated 34.3 million, or 14.0% of adults 18 years of age and older were current cigarette smokers.⁵
• Men tend to smoke more than women. In 2017, 15.8% of men currently smoked cigarettes daily compared to 12.2% of women.⁵ 
• Prevalence of current cigarette smoking in 2017 was highest among American Indians/Alaska Natives (24.6%), non-Hispanic whites (15.3%) and non-Hispanic blacks (15.1%), and was lowest among Hispanics (9.9%) and Asian-Americans (7.0%).⁵
• In 2017, 7.6 % of high school students and 2.1% of middle school students were current cigarette users.⁶

Facts about Quitting Smoking

• Nicotine is the chemical in cigarettes that causes addiction. Smokers not only become physically addicted to nicotine; they also link smoking with many social activities, making smoking an extremely difficult addiction to break.⁷
• In 2017, an estimated 55.2 million adults were former smokers. Of the 34.3 million current adult smokers, 48.4% stopped smoking for a day or more in the preceding year because they were trying to quit smoking completely.⁵
• Quitting smoking for good often requires multiple attempts. Using counseling or medication alone increases the chance of a quit attempt being successful; the combination of both is even more effective.⁸
• There are seven medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to aid in quitting smoking. Nicotine patches, nicotine gum and nicotine lozenges are available over the counter, and a nicotine nasal spray and inhaler are currently available by prescription. Bupropion SR (Zyban®) and varenicline (Chantix®) are non-nicotine pills.⁸
• Individual, group and telephone counseling are effective. Telephone quitline counseling is available in all 50 states and is effective for many different groups of smokers.⁸

Learn about the American Lung Association’s programs to help you or a loved one quit smoking, and join our advocacy efforts to reduce tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke. Visit Lung.org or call the Lung HelpLine at 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872).