美国烟民人数历史新低

The American Lung Association says fewer Americans smoke cigarettes now than before tobacco control policies were put in place.

In its annual report, the ALA says smoking rates among adults and teens are at historic lows. On average, just over 15.5 percent of American adults and eight percent of high school students smoke cigarettes.

The association gets its data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which show the smoking rate declined from 20.9 percent in 2005 to 15.5 percent in 2016. Still, CDC data shows that nearly 38 million American adults continue to smoke.

Yet, the American Lung Association finds that certain groups and regions in the United States are disproportionately impacted by tobacco use and exposure to second-hand smoke. Thomas Carr, the ALA\'s Director of National Policy who wrote the 2018 report "The State of Tobacco Control," said poorer Americans, those who are less educated, Native Americans and some ethnic groups have smoking rates that are close to 30 percent or higher.

There\'s also peer pressure, and when friends or parents smoke, teens tend to take up the habit. Studies show that most people who smoke start before they are 18. Some start as young as age 11 according to The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Carr calls it a pediatric disease. "It starts in your teens and then once you\'re hooked, you can\'t get off of it."

The lung association is pushing states to raise the age where young people can legally purchase cigarettes to 21, the minimum age in the United States for purchasing alcohol. The thought is that if middle and high school students can\'t get cigarettes, they are less likely to start smoking.

The lung association issues an annual report to help promote state and federal regulations to make it easier for people who smoke to quit and to help those who don\'t smoke not to start.

美国肺脏协会在年度报告中说，成年人和十几岁青少年的吸烟比例都处于历史低水平。目前美国成年人中有15.5%的人吸烟。这个比例在美国高中生中为8%。

统计数字来自美国疾病控制与预防中心。美国成年人的吸烟率从2005年的20.9%降到2016年的15.5%。不过，美国人口中仍有3800万成年人在吸烟。

美国肺脏协会的调查发现，美国的某些群体和一些地区吸烟率以及受“二手烟”影响的比例高于美国的平均比例。协会国家政策部主任卡尔是2018年“烟草控制咨文”的作者。他说，相对贫困、受教育程度低的美国人，印第安原住民以及某些族裔的吸烟率高达30%，甚至更高。

朋友和父母吸烟的青少年更容易吸烟。研究显示，大多数烟民是在18岁之前学会吸烟，有些人甚至是在11岁的时候。卡尔称这种现象为“儿科疾病”。他说，年轻时上了瘾，以后很难摆脱。

美国肺脏协会正努力争取美国各州把法定可吸烟年龄上调到和饮酒一样的21岁，理由是中学和高中没有吸烟的人以后吸烟的可能性更小。

美国肺脏协会发表年报是为了改善联邦和各州的政府对烟草的监管，帮助吸烟者戒烟，未吸烟者永不吸烟。