some racial groups still register high smoking rates despite continuous warnings
According to the CDC, some racial groups still register high smoking rates despite the continuous warnings broadcasted on the media and even on the cigarette packages.
The health equity associate director for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Office, Bridgette Garett stated that the overall number of people who decided to kick the habit is increasing, but there are some ethnic groups seem to enjoy tobacco more than others.
“Even though the overall cigarette smoking rate is declining, disparities remain among racial and ethnic groups and within subgroups,” Bridgette Garett declared.
She continued to say that the study on the rates of tobacco consumption among different ethnicities can help authorities come up with the best course of action in combating the nicotine addiction and reducing the number of smokers.
“Looking beyond broad racial and ethnic population categories can help better focus the strategies that we know work to reduce tobacco use among subgroups with higher rates of use.”
According to the studies, between 2002 and 2005 and 2010 and 2013, the smoking rates for whites and blacks dropped from 28 percent to 25 percent.
For the Pacific Islanders and Native Hawaiians, the numbers dropped from a whopping 31 percent to a safer 23 percent.
However, the Alaska Native and American Indians weren’t that determined to kick the habit and renounce their nicotine addiction. In their case, the smoking rates raised from 37 percent to 39 percent, placing them in a category on which the researchers want to focus more, to see what drove the two ethnicities to smoke more in a time in which people struggle to smoke less.
In the case of Asian-Americans, the rate of smoking dropped from 14.5 percent to 11 percent. However, the smaller groups from within the community, like the Japanese, Chinese, and Asian Indians ha lower smoking rates than the Vietnamese, Koreans, and Filipinos. The most avid smokers from this category were the Koreans.
Another pleasant surprise came from the Hispanics. Their rate considerably lowered from 24 percent to an impressive 20 percent.
However, there were big differences among the smaller groups. While Puerto Ricans registered a rate of 28.5 percent, only 20 percent of Cubans preferred to puff the nicotine away. Mexicans were even less interested in the habit, registering 19 percent, and South and Central Americans taking the lead on healthy living with only 16 percent.
The full study was published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report on August 4th.
What so you think about the fact that some racial groups still register high smoking rates? Do you think that anti-smoking adds should be personalized accordingly?
Image source: Wikipedia
