Though people are smoking less these days than before, young adults are the most likely people to smoke. That might surprise you, or it might not.
From today's article on WSJ.com, "The Twentysomething Paradox: We Smoke but We're Not Smokers"-
"According to the CDC, 28% of men and 20.7% of women between ages 18 and 24 reported smoking every day or some days in 2005 -- the highest smoking rate of all age groups. The vast majority of these young adults say they plan to quit in 10 years, according to a CDC survey."
Does the preceding quote apply to your or a friend? Consider this-
"Smokers today smoke fewer cigarettes, says Dr. Matthew McKenna, the director of the office on smoking and health at the Centers for Disease Control and Protection. 'You're going to have many more of these types of folks who smoke on an intermittent basis. The phenomenon has increased between 20% to 25% over the past 10 years. In the past, people were much more likely to say they smoked every day, and that has decreased.' He attributes the difference to changing social norms about smoking, the increased cost of cigarettes and the proliferation of smoking bans in public places."
I found this surprising (and I'm actually a bit skeptical of the point)-
"Whether a person smokes one cigarette a day or seven on Saturday night makes no difference, according to Dr. McKenna, who says the risks of heart and lung disease correlate to the number of cigarettes a person has smoked -- total."
I don't think there are many people who smoke one cigarette every day. I think if you're smoking every day of the week, you're probably smoking a lot more than someone who smokes just when he or she goes out drinking. I also think that your body can probably more easily cope with the toxins when spread out over a longer period than all at one time (like binge drinking versus moderate, regular alcohol consumption). The point, of course, is that you shouldn't smoke at all, so that's what we're supposed to take away from this article.
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