The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) measured the prevalence of smoking in the U.S.  Approximately 44.5 million people in the United States are smokers.  The good news is that, compared to the last survey, the number of documented smokers is declining.  Among adults (age 18+), 20.9% are currently smokers with more men (23.4%) smoking than women (18.5%).

Among the current smokers, 41% reported stopping smoking for at least one day during the past year.  This is encouraging because it means that nearly half of all smokers are actively seeking ways to quit.  The key is to help these people find the assistance they need to quit.  The survey also found that the majority of people who have ever smoked (90.2 million adults) have now quit (45.6 million people).

For those who quit smoking, the risk of coronary heart disease and lung cancer steadily declines.  In fact, the risk of lung cancer is cut by 30-50% after 10 years of quitting smoking.  In addition, the risk of heart disease is nearly the same as those who have never smoked after 15 years of quitting.  While it might be slightly helpful to cut back on the amount of cigarettes smoked, research does not show that people who continue to smoke at a lesser level have a significant decrease in overall mortality.  In other words, smokers need to completely quit in order to reduce their risk of death and disease.  

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Source: CDC. Cigarette Smoking Among Adults - United States, 2004; JAMA. (Feb. 2006).