In 2022 the US adult smoking prevalence rate was the lowest ever, while the vaping rate was the highest ever.
Recent data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that cigarette smoking dropped to a new all-time low last year, with 1 in 9 adults or about 11% saying they are current smokers. In 2020 and 2021 the smoking rate was about 12.5%.
On the other hand, 5.8% of the adults surveyed reported using vape products every day or some days. In Q4/2022 adult vaping prevalence was 6.6%, the highest number since 2019, when the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) added vaping to its survey.
The preliminary data was based on the NHIS responses from more than 27,000 adults. The findings are estimations and may be revised later. The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), a division of the CDC, conducts the NHIS each year.
In the middle of the 1960s, 42% of American adults smoked. Due to tobacco product price increases, smoking prohibitions, cigarette taxes, and changes in the social perception of public smoking, the rate has been steadily declining for decades. Adult smoking prevalence was 20.6% in 2009, the year the e-cigarette era began in the US. Since then, adult smoking has decreased by more than 45%. In the 12 years from 1997 to 2009, the smoking prevalence dropped just 16.6% (24.7% to 20.6%).
For teenagers, according to additional CDC data, only 2% of high school students smoked conventional cigarettes last year, but 14% of them used e-cigarettes.