11 Facts About Teen Smoking

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1. 90% of smokers began before the age 19.^[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Youth and Tobacco Use." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/youth_data/tobacco_use/index.htm (accessed July 20, 2014).]
2. Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States.^[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Fast Facts." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fast_facts/ (accessed July 22, 2014).]
3. About 1.69 billion pounds of butts end up as toxic trash each year, making cigarettes the most littered item on Earth.^[Carlozo, Louis R. "Cigarettes: 1.7 billion pounds of trash." Chicago Tribune, 2008.]
4. About 30% of teen smokers will continue smoking and die early from a smoking-related disease.^["Got A Match?." NIDA for Teens. http://teens.drugabuse.gov/educators/curricula-and-lesson-plans/mind-over-matter/tobacco-addiction/got-match (accessed July 22, 2014).]
5. Teen smokers are more likely to have panic attacks, anxiety disorders and depression.^[ABC News Network. "Study Links Smoking to Anxiety Disorders." ABC News. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=117838 (accessed July 22, 2014).]
6. Studies have found that nearly all first use of tobacco takes place before high school graduation.^["Children and Teens - American Lung Association." American Lung Association. http://www.lung.org/stop-smoking/about-smoking/facts-figures/children-teens-and-tobacco.html (accessed July 20, 2014).]
7. Approximately 1.5 million packs of cigarettes are purchased for minors annually. In 2016, 53,566 pharmacies still sell tobacco. Get tobacco out of pharmacies through Take Back the Shelves.^["Underage Smoking Statistics." Statistic Brain RSS. http://www.statisticbrain.com/underage-smoking-statistics/ (accessed July 22, 2014).]
8. On average, smokers die 13 to 14 years earlier than nonsmokers.^[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Fast Facts." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/fast_facts/ (accessed July 22, 2014).]
9. According to the Surgeon General, teenagers who smoke are 3 times more likely to use alcohol, 8 times more likely to smoke marijuana, and 22 times more likely to use cocaine.^["HEALTH HARMS FROM SMOKING AND OTHER TOBACCO USE." Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. http://www.tobaccofreekids.org/research/factsheets/pdf/0194.pdf (accessed July 22, 2014).]
10. In fact, hookah smoke has been shown to contain concentrations of toxins, such as carbon monoxide, nicotine, tar, and heavy metals, that are as high, or higher, than those that are seen with cigarette smoke.^["Children and Teens - American Lung Association." American Lung Association. http://www.lung.org/stop-smoking/about-smoking/facts-figures/children-teens-and-tobacco.html (accessed July 20, 2014).]
11. Cigarette smokers are also more likely to get into fights, carry weapons, attempt suicide, suffer from mental health problems such as depression, and engage in high-risk sexual behaviors.^["Children and Teens - American Lung Association." American Lung Association. http://www.lung.org/stop-smoking/about-smoking/facts-figures/children-teens-and-tobacco.html (accessed July 20, 2014).]