Complete Health Indicator Report of Smoking Among Adolescents
Definition
Percentage of students who smoked cigarettes on one or more of the past 30 days.Numerator
Number of students surveyed who smoked cigarettes on one or more of the past 30 days.Denominator
Number of all students surveyed.Data Interpretation Issues
Data are from sample surveys and are subject to selection bias. Data are self-reported and subject to recall bias. 2015 YRBS data for Utah are not available.Why Is This Important?
Tobacco use remains a leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States. Children and adolescents who smoke cigarettes are at increased risk for developing respiratory illnesses, impaired lung growth, cancer, heart disease, and weakened immune systems. One-third of adolescents who continue to use tobacco will die from tobacco-related diseases. In addition, youth smokers are less physically fit and less likely to be committed to their education than their nonsmoking peers. Since nearly all adult smokers begin smoking during adolescence, preventing youth from starting to use tobacco products is expected to result in substantial declines in tobacco-related disease and death.Other Objectives
CSTE Chronic Disease IndicatorsHow Are We Doing?
Cigarette smoking among Utah high school students almost doubled from the mid-80s to the mid-90s (Bahr Survey, 1984-1997). Since the mid-90s, the percentage of Utah high school students who reported cigarette smoking declined from 17.0% to 1.1% (Utah YRBS 1995-2023).How Do We Compare With the U.S.?
In 2023, 1.1% of Utah high school students reported cigarette smoking (Utah YRBS 2023). In comparison, 1.9% of U.S. students reported cigarette smoking in 2023 (National Youth Tobacco Survey 2023).What Is Being Done?
The Tobacco Prevention and Control Program at the Utah Department of Health and Human Services and its partners prevent youth tobacco use (including the use of vape products) through a variety of programs and initiatives. These programs include an anti-tobacco marketing campaign, school- and community-based prevention activities, tobacco cessation programs tailored to teens, and initiatives to strengthen tobacco-free norms and protect children and nonsmokers from secondhand smoke through tobacco-free policies. These efforts are supported by local youth groups who share information about the dangers of tobacco use, expose tobacco and vape industry marketing techniques, and educate about the benefits of tobacco-free policies. Utah's anti-tobacco marketing campaign uses television, radio, billboard, online, and print media to reach mainstream and high-risk youth with anti-tobacco messages. The campaign's goals are to counter tobacco industry advertising, inform Utahns about quit services, and reinforce and support local tobacco control initiatives. Quit services available to Utah youth include a Tobacco Quit Line program tailored to teens ([https://mylifemyquit.com/]). Efforts to strengthen tobacco-free policies focus on schools, multi-unit housing, and outdoor venues frequented by children and adolescents.Available Services
The Utah Tobacco Quit Line offers customized assistance for quitting tobacco use (including vape products) to Utah adults, youth, and Spanish speakers. The quit program for youth can be accessed online at [https://mylifemyquit.com/].Health Program Information
For more information on tobacco prevention and control programs visit [https://tobaccofree.utah.gov/].Related Indicators
Related Relevant Population Characteristics Indicators:
Related Health Status Outcomes Indicators:
- Asthma: Adult Prevalence
- Asthma: Child Prevalence
- Asthma-related Emergency Department (ED) Visits
- Asthma Hospitalizations
- Bladder Cancer
- Blood Cholesterol: Doctor-diagnosed High Cholesterol
- Cancer Deaths
- Cervical Cancer Death
- Cervical Cancer Incidence
- Colorectal Cancer Deaths
- Colorectal Cancer Incidence
- Fair/poor Health
- Heart Attack: Hospitalizations
- Health Status: Physical Health Past 30 Days
- Ischemic Heart Disease Deaths
- Lung cancer incidence
- Lung Cancer Deaths
- Stroke (Cerebrovascular Disease) Deaths
Graphical Data Views
Current Cigarette Smoking by Sex and Year, Utah Students Grades 9-12, 1991-2013 and 2017-2023
Data are self-reported and subject to recall bias. Data are from a sample survey and subject to selection bias. Comparisons of annual rates must be interpreted cautiously as methods used to collect YRBS data may vary from year to year. With the introduction of active parental consent for Utah school surveys between 1997 and 1999, the student response rate for the YRBS decreased significantly. 2015 YRBS data for Utah are not available.
| Males vs. Females | Year | Percentage of Students | Lower Limit | Upper Limit | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Record Count: 34 | ||||||
| Male | 1991 | 18.0% | 14.0% | 22.0% | ||
| Male | 1993 | 19.0% | 16.6% | 21.4% | ||
| Male | 1995 | 17.2% | 13.5% | 20.9% | ||
| Male | 1997 | 17.4% | 14.3% | 20.5% | ||
| Male | 1999 | 11.7% | 8.3% | 16.2% | ||
| Male | 2001 | 7.1% | 4.5% | 10.9% | ||
| Male | 2003 | 7.2% | 4.2% | 12.1% | ||
| Male | 2005 | 7.6% | 4.7% | 12.1% | ||
| Male | 2007 | 9.3% | 5.4% | 15.6% | ||
| Male | 2009 | 10.2% | 7.4% | 13.9% | ||
| Male | 2011 | 7.0% | 5.2% | 9.3% | ||
| Male | 2013 | 5.3% | 3.5% | 7.7% | ||
| Male | 2015 | ** | ||||
| Male | 2017 | 4.3% | 3.0% | 6.1% | ||
| Male | 2019 | 3.1% | 1.7% | 5.6% | ||
| Male | 2021 | 2.3% | 1.5% | 3.5% | ||
| Male | 2023 | ** | ||||
| Female | 1991 | 15.6% | 12.0% | 19.2% | ||
| Female | 1993 | 15.7% | 13.2% | 18.2% | ||
| Female | 1995 | 16.9% | 12.1% | 21.7% | ||
| Female | 1997 | 15.0% | 11.0% | 19.0% | ||
| Female | 1999 | 11.8% | 8.0% | 17.1% | ||
| Female | 2001 | 9.6% | 6.9% | 13.1% | ||
| Female | 2003 | 7.3% | 4.7% | 11.2% | ||
| Female | 2005 | 7.1% | 4.6% | 10.7% | ||
| Female | 2007 | 5.7% | 4.2% | 7.7% | ||
| Female | 2009 | 6.5% | 4.7% | 8.9% | ||
| Female | 2011 | 4.5% | 3.2% | 6.4% | ||
| Female | 2013 | 3.5% | 2.5% | 4.7% | ||
| Female | 2015 | ** | ||||
| Female | 2017 | 3.0% | 2.0% | 4.5% | ||
| Female | 2019 | 1.3% | 0.6% | 2.7% | ||
| Female | 2021 | 1.6% | 0.9% | 2.6% | ||
| Female | 2023 | ** | ||||
Data Notes
The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is conducted with a representative sample of Utah public high school students in grades 9 to 12. Surveys were only conducted in odd-numbered years. 2015 YRBS data for Utah are not available.[[br]] ^^**The estimates for 2023 have been suppressed because the relative standard errors are greater than 50% and the observed numbers of events are very small and not appropriate for publication.Data Source
Utah Department of Health and Human Services Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS)Current Cigarette Smoking by Year, High School Students Grades 9-12, Utah and U.S., 1991-2023
Data are self-reported and subject to recall bias. Data are from a sample survey and subject to selection bias. Comparisons of annual rates must be interpreted cautiously as methods used to collect YRBS data may vary from year to year. With the introduction of active parental consent for Utah school surveys between 1997 and 1999, the student response rate for the YRBS decreased significantly. 2015 YRBS data for Utah are not available.
| Utah vs. U.S. | Year | Percentage of Students | Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Record Count: 32 | ||||||
| Utah | 1991 | 16.8% | 13.3% | 20.3% | ||
| Utah | 1993 | 17.4% | 15.4% | 19.4% | ||
| Utah | 1995 | 17.0% | 13.2% | 20.8% | ||
| Utah | 1997 | 16.4% | 13.4% | 19.4% | ||
| Utah | 1999 | 11.9% | 8.4% | 16.8% | ||
| Utah | 2001 | 8.3% | 6.1% | 11.2% | ||
| Utah | 2003 | 7.3% | 5.3% | 10.2% | ||
| Utah | 2005 | 7.4% | 5.0% | 10.8% | ||
| Utah | 2007 | 7.9% | 5.3% | 11.7% | ||
| Utah | 2009 | 8.5% | 6.5% | 10.9% | ||
| Utah | 2011 | 5.9% | 4.9% | 7.1% | ||
| Utah | 2013 | 4.4% | 3.3% | 5.8% | ||
| Utah | 2017 | 3.8% | 2.8% | 5.0% | ||
| Utah | 2019 | 2.2% | 1.4% | 3.5% | ||
| Utah | 2021 | 1.9% | 1.4% | 2.7% | ||
| Utah | 2023 | 1.1% | 0.5% | 2.4% | * | |
| U.S. | 1991 | 27.5% | 24.8% | 30.2% | ||
| U.S. | 1993 | 30.5% | 28.6% | 32.4% | ||
| U.S. | 1995 | 34.8% | 32.6% | 37.0% | ||
| U.S. | 1997 | 36.4% | 34.1% | 38.7% | ||
| U.S. | 1999 | 34.8% | 32.3% | 37.3% | ||
| U.S. | 2001 | 28.5% | 26.5% | 30.5% | ||
| U.S. | 2003 | 21.9% | 19.8% | 24.0% | ||
| U.S. | 2005 | 23.0% | 20.7% | 25.3% | ||
| U.S. | 2007 | 20.0% | 17.6% | 22.6% | ||
| U.S. | 2009 | 19.5% | 17.9% | 21.2% | ||
| U.S. | 2011 | 18.1% | 16.7% | 19.5% | ||
| U.S. | 2013 | 15.7% | 13.5% | 18.1% | ||
| U.S. | 2015 | 10.8% | 9.4% | 12.4% | ||
| U.S. | 2017 | 8.8% | 7.2% | 10.7% | ||
| U.S. | 2019 | 6.0% | 5.0% | 7.2% | ||
| U.S. | 2021 | 3.8% | 3.3% | 4.4% | ||
Data Notes
The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is conducted with a representative sample of Utah public high school students in grades 9 to 12. Surveys were only conducted in odd-numbered years. 2015 YRBS data for Utah are not available.[[br]] ^^*Use caution in interpreting; the estimate has a coefficient of variation > 30% and is therefore deemed unreliable by Utah Department of Health and Human Services standards.Data Sources
- Utah Department of Health and Human Services Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS)
- Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, US Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control, and Prevention (CDC)
Current Cigarette Smoking by Local Health District, Utah Students Grades 8, 10, 12 (combined), 2021 and 2023 (combined)
The Prevention Needs Assessment is conducted in odd years with Utah students in grades 6, 8, 10, and 12.
| Local Health District | Percentage of Students (Grades 8, 10, 12) | Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Note | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Record Count: 14 | ||||||
| Bear River | 0.8% | 0.6% | 1.1% | |||
| Central | 1.1% | 0.8% | 1.7% | |||
| Davis County | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.9% | |||
| Salt Lake County | 1.1% | 0.9% | 1.3% | |||
| San Juan | ** | ** | ||||
| Southeast | 2.5% | 1.5% | 4.2% | |||
| Southwest | 1.4% | 1.1% | 1.8% | |||
| Summit | 1.4% | 0.7% | 2.7% | * | ||
| Tooele | 0.9% | 0.6% | 1.3% | |||
| TriCounty | 1.9% | 1.0% | 3.6% | * | ||
| Utah County | 0.8% | 0.6% | 1.0% | |||
| Wasatch | 0.8% | 0.3% | 1.9% | * | ||
| Weber-Morgan | 0.8% | 0.6% | 1.2% | |||
| State of Utah | 1.0% | 0.9% | 1.1% | |||
Data Notes
*Use caution in interpreting; the estimate has a coefficient of variation > 30% and is therefore deemed unreliable by Utah Department of Health and Human Services standards.[[br]] ^^**The estimate has been suppressed because 1) the relative standard error is greater than 50% or 2) the observed number of events is very small and not appropriate for publication.Data Source
Prevention Needs Assessment SurveyReferences and Community Resources
Utah Department of Health and Human Services, Tobacco Prevention and Control Program website: [https://tobaccofree.utah.gov/][[br]] Tobacco cessation website: [http://waytoquit.org] More information on the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System can be found on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention YRBSS website - [https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/data/yrbs/index.htm].More Resources and Links
Evidence-based community health improvement ideas and interventions may be found at the following sites:Additional indicator data by state and county may be found on these Websites:
- CDC Prevention Status Reports for all 50 states
- County Health Rankings
- Kaiser Family Foundation's StateHealthFacts.org
- CDC WONDER DATA2010, the Healthy People 2010 Database.
Medical literature can be queried at the PubMed website.
Page Content Updated On 03/13/2024,
Published on 05/30/2024
