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The Health of Florida's Children and Youth
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Leading Health Indicator 15
Tobacco Use

Reduce the proportion of pregnant women, children and youth who smoke and are exposed to second hand smoke

HP 2010 Goal
Reduce illness, disability and death related to tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke

Cigarette smoking and “passive” smoke are correlated with an increased risk of sudden death and low birthweight for infants, increased severity of asthma in children, miscarriage and premature delivery for pregnant women, and early death in adults from heart disease and lung cancer. When smoking begins in childhood, the risk for lifelong dependence is greater. Nationally and in Florida smoking has declined among both adults and youth.(1-5)  (6-8)   Florida has been a national leader in developing smoking cessation initiatives directed at youth and has had significantly greater declines in smoking among youth than the U.S. average. Between 1998 and 2001, 47 percent fewer middle school youth and 30.6 percent fewer high school youth reported smoking cigarettes on one or more of the past 30 days. This decline represents nearly 75,000 fewer Florida youth smokers between 1998 and 2001.

Figure 77: Percent of Florida Middle and High School Students and U.S. High School Students
Who Smoked Cigarettes on One or More of the Past 30 Days 1998-2001(9-13)
Figure 77: Percent of Florida Middle and High School Students and U.S. High School Students Who Smoked Cigarettes on One or More of the Past 30 Days 1998-2001
Source: Florida Data – Florida Youth Tobacco Survey 1998 – 2001 www.doh.state.fl.us/disease_ctrl/epi/FYTS/
U.S. Data – Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance (YRBSS, 1999, and 2001. (1999 & 2001 Tables 14-15 &, 26-27)
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00054432.htm

Note: Though YRBSS data is available for Florida, the Florida Youth Survey provides greater Florida specific information has a smaller margin of error, measures younger students than the Florida YRBSS and is conducted annually. The 1999 and 2001 YRBSS is used only for U.S. comparison purposes. The 1999 and 2001 YRBSS Florida equivalent data for 1999 and 2001 findings were similar – among high school students YRBSS found 27.4% smoked in 1999 and 21.5% in 2001– a 22% decline as compared to the U.S. 18% decline for the same 2 year time period. The Florida Youth survey found a 25% decline for High school students during this same 2 year time period.


Non-Hispanic white youth are the most likely to smoke in both high school and middle school while black youths are the least likely.

Figure 78: Percent Florida Middle and High School Students Who are Current
Tobacco Users by Race/Ethnicity in 2001
Figure 78: Percent Florida Middle and High School Students Who are Current Tobacco Users by Race/Ethnicity in 2001 		Source: Florida Department of Health, Florida Youth Tobacco Survey 2001 www.doh.state.fl.us/disease_ctrl/epi/FYTS/


Figure 79: Trends in Smoking During Pregnancy in the U.S. and Florida, 1990-1999
Figure 79: Trends in Smoking During Pregnancy in the U.S. and Florida, 1990-1999 		Source: Matthews, TJ. Smoking During Pregnancy, 1990-96 and Smoking During Pregnancy in the 1990s. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 49 no 7 http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/releases/01news/smokpreg.htm and Vol. 47, no 10. Hyattsville, Maryland: National Center for Health Statistics. 2001. http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr47/nvs47_10.pdf
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