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Healthy Aging - Current Smoking
Indicator 8: Current Smoking
Although most older adults who were once regular smokers have quit, about 9% of adults aged 65 or older were still smoking cigarettes in 2004.
Postmenopausal women who smoke have lower bone density and an increased risk for hip fracture than women who never smoked.(1)
Even adults who have smoked for a lifetime can gain significant health benefits from quitting. For example, the risk for heart attack declines and overall lung function improves within just two weeks to three months of quitting.(2)
A confidence interval (CI) describes the level of
uncertainty of an estimate and specifies the range in which the true value is
likely to fall. The State of Aging and Health in America online report
uses a 95% level of significance, which means that 95% of the time, the true
value falls within these boundaries.
†
Rankings are based on the relative numeric scores for
each indicator, with a ranking of "1" indicating the highest rank.
‡
Grades are calculated as tertiles (thirds) and show state performance relative
to all other states.
§
2003 data are used for Hawaii because no 2004 data exist.
Note:When comparing
prevalence of variables across states or years, we recommend the use of
confidence intervals. If the confidence intervals overlap, the difference is
not statistically significant.
References:
1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Women and smoking: a report of
the Surgeon General. Rockville, MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2001. Available at
http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/sgr/sgr_forwomen/index.htm (accessed May 23, 2006).
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Within 20 minutes of quitting
(Poster). Available at
http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/sgr/sgr_2004/posters/20mins.htm (accessed May 23,
2006).
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 1600 Clifton Rd. Atlanta, GA
30333, USA
800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) TTY: (888) 232-6348, 24 Hours/Every Day - cdcinfo@cdc.gov