LOS ANGELES – A new report on the well-being of American
children, compiled by the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family
Statistics, found that cigarette smoking hit the lowest point ever recorded
among American eighth-graders, high school sophomores and seniors in 2012,
reports the Los Angeles Times.
Among the report’s finding:
- In 2012, about 2% of 8th-graders, 5% of
10th-graders, and 9% of 12th-graders reported smoking cigarettes daily in the
past 30 days — the lowest reported percentages among these students in the
history of the survey (since 1980).
- The smoking rate starts to diverge by gender as
children age: Among 10th-graders, 6% of male and 4% of female students reported
daily smoking, and 11% of male and 7% of female 12th-grade students reported
daily smoking in 2012.
- Also in 2012, about 12% of White, non-Hispanic
12th-grade students reported smoking cigarettes daily in the past 30 days, compared
with 5% of Black, non-Hispanic and 5% of Hispanic 12th-grade students.
- U.S. kids are also less likely to be exposed to
secondhand smoke. The percentage of children ages 4 to11 with any detectable
level of blood cotinine, an indicator of recent exposure to secondhand smoke,
declined from 53% in 2007–2008 to 42% in 2009–2010.
The report compiled research from government agencies and
research groups, including the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which tracks
cigarette smoking.