Lung Association Emphasizes Significance of All-time Low in Chicago Youth Cigarette Use

Lauds Mayor, City Council for decline among young adults following Tobacco 21 law

(January 29, 2018) - CHICAGO

Ninety-five percent of adult smokers start before the age of 21. That's why the news today about the Chicago teen youth smoking rate reaching an all-time low, six percent, is momentous. It means less teens are developing a dangerous lifelong habit, a habit that can ultimately take their lives.

Tobacco use is the number one cause of preventable death in the U.S., killing almost half-a-million people a year; stealing the lives of more than 18,000 Illinoisans every year.

From raising the tobacco purchasing age to 21, expanding smokefree environments, to regulating e-cigarettes, the American Lung Association in Greater Chicago applauds Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago City Council for being a national leader on tobacco control policy.

The Lung Association will continue to work with the Chicago Department of Public Health and all of its other community partners to help create the first tobacco-free generation.

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About the American Lung Association

The American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease, through research, education and advocacy. The work of the American Lung Association is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer; to improve the air we breathe; to reduce the burden of lung disease on individuals and their families; and to eliminate tobacco use and tobacco-related diseases. For more information about the American Lung Association, a holder of the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Guide Seal, or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) or visit: Lung.org.