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Tobacco in Alabama
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Tobacco in Alabama
Tobacco is an agricultural product acting as a stimulant triggering complex biochemical and neurotransmitter disruptions. Its main ingredient is nicotine and it is present in all cigarettes. Early tobacco usage was for medical cures and religious purposes. In the early 1900s, cigarette usage became increasingly popular when it was sold in mass amounts. In 1964, the Surgeon General of the United States wrote a report concerning the dangers of cigarette smoking. In the United States, for the past 50 years efforts have been made so that the public should be aware of the risks of tobacco usage.
In Alabama, 22.1% of the adult population (ages 18+), over 783,000 individuals, are current cigarette smokers. Across all states, the prevalence of cigarette smoking among adults ranges from 9.3% to 26.5%. Alabama ranks 42nd among the states. Among youth ages 12–17, 12.0% smoke in Alabama. The range across all states is 6.5% to 15.9%. Alabama ranks 40th among the states.
Among adults age 35+ years, over 7,600 died as a result of tobacco use per year, on average, during 2000–2004. This represents a smoking-attributable mortality rate of 317.5 per 100,000. Alabama's smoking-attributable mortality rate ranks 44th among the states. Also, approximately 850 adult non-smokers die each year from exposure to secondhand smoke.
The American Lung Association, an organization which campaigns against the use of tobacco, is a member of the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Alabama and works towards reducing the tobacco usage in the state. They try to discourage tobacco usage by working to create smoke-free environments and advocating an increase of tobacco taxes.
While Alabama does not have a statewide smoking ban, smoking is prohibited in many public places and meetings because of the Alabama Clean Indoor Act which was enacted in 2003. State local governments have their own bans against smoking in their counties. A bill for a statewide smoking ban failed in the Alabama Legislature in May 2008. Alabama attempted to pass a smoking ban again in 2009, that was stalled when its author, Vivian Figures, pulled the bill from Senate consideration after it was amended by Senate to include smoking exemptions in certain places. In March 2011, a new bill was proposed, that if passed would ban smoking in all public places.
In 2008, a student group called Students Working Against Tobacco (SWAT) received $28,000 from the Alabama Department of Public Health to spread their message. SWAT operates out of Bryant, LeFlore and Murphy high schools and Phillips Preparatory middle school.
The Youth Empowerment Program is a peer-teaching model that provides anti-tobacco messages to more than 58,000 teens according to Alabama's state health officer Don Williamson. The state funds community groups to educate people about the dangers of second-hand smoke and to encourage young people to reject tobacco use. The State Health Department also has a new teen cessation project that uses advertising on television and radio, as well as a MySpace page.
The Auburn CARES Coalition and the Alabama Department of Public Health encourage young people to make healthy tobacco-free choices and for those using chewing tobacco to quit. ADPH offers a free support and counseling service to help users successfully quit.
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Tobacco in Alabama
Tobacco is an agricultural product acting as a stimulant triggering complex biochemical and neurotransmitter disruptions. Its main ingredient is nicotine and it is present in all cigarettes. Early tobacco usage was for medical cures and religious purposes. In the early 1900s, cigarette usage became increasingly popular when it was sold in mass amounts. In 1964, the Surgeon General of the United States wrote a report concerning the dangers of cigarette smoking. In the United States, for the past 50 years efforts have been made so that the public should be aware of the risks of tobacco usage.
In Alabama, 22.1% of the adult population (ages 18+), over 783,000 individuals, are current cigarette smokers. Across all states, the prevalence of cigarette smoking among adults ranges from 9.3% to 26.5%. Alabama ranks 42nd among the states. Among youth ages 12–17, 12.0% smoke in Alabama. The range across all states is 6.5% to 15.9%. Alabama ranks 40th among the states.
Among adults age 35+ years, over 7,600 died as a result of tobacco use per year, on average, during 2000–2004. This represents a smoking-attributable mortality rate of 317.5 per 100,000. Alabama's smoking-attributable mortality rate ranks 44th among the states. Also, approximately 850 adult non-smokers die each year from exposure to secondhand smoke.
The American Lung Association, an organization which campaigns against the use of tobacco, is a member of the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Alabama and works towards reducing the tobacco usage in the state. They try to discourage tobacco usage by working to create smoke-free environments and advocating an increase of tobacco taxes.
While Alabama does not have a statewide smoking ban, smoking is prohibited in many public places and meetings because of the Alabama Clean Indoor Act which was enacted in 2003. State local governments have their own bans against smoking in their counties. A bill for a statewide smoking ban failed in the Alabama Legislature in May 2008. Alabama attempted to pass a smoking ban again in 2009, that was stalled when its author, Vivian Figures, pulled the bill from Senate consideration after it was amended by Senate to include smoking exemptions in certain places. In March 2011, a new bill was proposed, that if passed would ban smoking in all public places.
In 2008, a student group called Students Working Against Tobacco (SWAT) received $28,000 from the Alabama Department of Public Health to spread their message. SWAT operates out of Bryant, LeFlore and Murphy high schools and Phillips Preparatory middle school.
The Youth Empowerment Program is a peer-teaching model that provides anti-tobacco messages to more than 58,000 teens according to Alabama's state health officer Don Williamson. The state funds community groups to educate people about the dangers of second-hand smoke and to encourage young people to reject tobacco use. The State Health Department also has a new teen cessation project that uses advertising on television and radio, as well as a MySpace page.
The Auburn CARES Coalition and the Alabama Department of Public Health encourage young people to make healthy tobacco-free choices and for those using chewing tobacco to quit. ADPH offers a free support and counseling service to help users successfully quit.