Tobacco Free California

CALIFORNIA'S TOBACCO EDUCATION PROGRAM:
SAVING LIVES AND MAKING OUR STATE A BETTER PLACE FOR ALL

Looking back at California in 1988, then fast forwarding to the present, we are amazed by the vast changes achieved and obstacles overcome by California's tobacco control movement. When California voters approved Proposition 99 - the tax increase of 25 cents per pack on cigarettes and other tobacco products - no one could have predicted the profound impact funding the world's first comprehensive tobacco control program would have on the state of California.

For more than a decade, California's Tobacco Control Program (CTCP) has helped save lives and has impacted the health of every Californian. Through grassroots programs designed and implemented by local health departments, community coalitions and organizations, statewide projects, ethnic networks, schools, and a statewide mass media campaign, the program has significantly benefited the lives of millions of Californians.

The program has aimed to raise awareness among both adults and youth about the dangers of tobacco use. As a result, California's youth are growing up in a state where it is not socially acceptable to smoke. They attend smoke-free schools, shop in smoke-free stores, and most work in smoke-free environments, and the majority live in smoke-free homes. Download information here about California's successes in protecting people from secondhand smoke.
Click here to download a report on California's secondhand smoke activities.

California is a healthier and stronger state thanks to reduced adult and youth tobacco smoking rates, decreased consumption, greater protections from dangerous secondhand smoke toxins, efforts to expose and counter the tobacco industry's negative influences, and policies to help keep tobacco products out of the hands of children.

A WORLD LEADER AND MODEL FOR SUCCESS
California's tobacco education program has been recognized worldwide for its impressive successes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization, along with numerous other states and countries look to California as a model for success.

ACHIEVING A TOBACCO-FREE CALIFORNIA

The state's comprehensive approach to tobacco education and cessation activities has proven highly effective. By tackling tobacco cessation through many channels - policy development, outreach and education and offering cessation services - a more informed public has made the healthy choice not to smoke.

CALIFORNIA ADULT SMOKING RATE SECOND LOWEST IN NATION
With aggressive advertising and public relations campaigns, along with community programs, the state has made significant advances in achieving a tobacco-free California.

California has the second lowest adult smoking rate in the nation; only Utah's is lower.
Adult smoking rates tumbled from 22.7 percent in 1988 to 13.3 percent in 2006.
Among men, smoking decreased from 25.6 percent in 1988 to 17.5 percent in 2006.
Among women, smoking decreased from 19.9 percent in 1988 to 9.1 percent in 2006.
Among people 12 and older, California has the lowest smoking rate in the United States, this according to data released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in February 2007.

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CALIFORNIA TEENAGERS SMOKE LESS
Fewer teenagers smoke in California than almost anywhere else in the nation - a direct result of statewide and local youth access laws, smoke-free environments, increased tobacco taxes, and a society in which smoking is no longer a social norm.

In 2006, smoking rates among California middle school students was 6.1 percent.
Among California high school students, smoking rates were 15.4 percent in 2006.
California?s increase in youth smoking is consistent with recent national trends.
The percentage of California youth who smoke is still far below the national average.

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CONSUMPTION OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS DECLINES DRAMATICALLY
Those that still smoke are smoking substantially less.

Consumption of tobacco products has decreased by more than 65 percent since the program began.
Cigarette consumption was 123.3 packs per capita in 1987-1988, compared to 43 packs per capita in 2005-2006.
California has the lowest per capita tobacco consumption in the nation.

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CALIFORNIA TOBACCO-RELATED CANCERS DECLINE
With fewer people smoking and per-capita consumption of cigarettes at an all time low, tobacco-related cancers in California have significantly declined.

California had a lower incidence rate than the rest of the United States for six out of nine tobacco-related cancers.
Lung and bronchus cancer rates in California are declining nearly 3.5 times faster than the rest of the United States.

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FEWER CALIFORNIANS EXPOSED TO SECONDHAND SMOKE
Secondhand smoke's deadly impact has been reduced.

As secondhand smoke policies increase, exposure to secondhand smoke has become less socially acceptable.
An increasing number of Californians are protecting themselves and the people in their households.
In 2005, more than 50 percent of California smokers did not allow any smoking in the home, up from 20.3 percent in 1993.

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TOBACCO USE REMAINS A PROBLEM
Despite these successes, tobacco use continues to take a terrible toll - physically, emotionally and financially - on people and families throughout California, and across the nation. This year alone, more than 43,000 people in California will prematurely die from a tobacco-related disease. In addition, the cost of smoking in California is nearly $16 billion annually, or $3,331 per smoker every year, according to a report by the Institute for Health & Aging at the University of California, San Francisco.

But working together, one day at a time, we will continue our fight against Big Tobacco and protect millions of Californians from the pain and suffering caused by tobacco use. California's resolve to create a tobacco-free environment ensures that our successes will not lead to complacency. Throughout the state, efforts are being made to push the tobacco control envelope to further protect Californians from the dangers of tobacco and secondhand smoke.

MORE STATISTICS AND INFORMATION
For more information on California's Tobacco Control Program, or to obtain the latest facts and statistics on tobacco, visit the California Department of Public Health, Tobacco Control Program's Web site, www.dhs.ca.gov/tobacco.