Percentage of adults who are current smokers (age-adjusted). The 2023 County Health Rankings used data from 2020 for this measure.

Each year approximately 480,000 premature deaths can be attributed to smoking.¹ Cigarette smoking is identified as a cause of various cancers, cardiovascular disease, and respiratory conditions, as well as low birthweight and other adverse health outcomes. Measuring the prevalence of tobacco use in the population can alert communities to potential adverse health outcomes and can be valuable for assessing the need for cessation programs or the effectiveness of existing tobacco control programs. A study evaluating the reliability and validity of the self-reported BRFSS measures found high reliability and validity for the “current smoker” responses, confirming that they are a fairly accurate portrayal of the population’s smoking behavior.² The term “tobacco” refers to commercial tobacco, not ceremonial or traditional tobacco. (CHR 2023)