Cigarette Smoking Among Adults--United States, 1992, and Changes in the Definition of Current Cigarette Smoking

Use of tobacco in the United States is monitored continually by CDC to evaluate efforts to control and prevent the use of this substance. The prevalence of cigarette smoking among U.S. adults decreased from 1965 to 1990 (from 42.4% to 25.5%) and remained stable from 1990 to 1991 (from 25.5% to 25.6%) (1). To determine the prevalence of smoking among adults during 1992, the National Health Interview Survey-Cancer Control and Epidemiology Supplements (NHIS-CCES) collected self-reported information on cigarette smoking from a random sample of civilian, non-institutionalized adults aged > or = 18 years. For 1992, the definition used to assess self-reported smoking prevalence was changed to more accurately assess some-day (i.e., intermittent) smoking because of a recognized higher prevalence of intermittent smoking (2). This report presents the prevalence estimates for 1992, compares findings with 1991, and assesses the impact of changes in the definition of current smoker on these estimates.