Has Arizona’s tobacco control program been effective in reducing tobacco use among teens?
According to the CDC, 34.5% of U.S. high school students and 15.1% of middle school students currently use some form of tobacco. Arizona statistics show a decrease in tobacco use among high school students and middle school students between 1997 and 2000. According to the Arizona Department of Health Services, the tobacco use rate among high school students decreased from 31.3% in 1997 to 24.6% in 2000, and the middle school rate decreased from 18.7% to 11.4%. Additionally, between 1996 and 1999, there was a 17% increase in tobacco use among 18-24 year olds nationally, but there was a 24%decrease in tobacco use among 18-24 year olds in Arizona. These young adults would have been in middle school or high school when the ADHS-funded Smelly Puking Habit media campaign started in 1996.
