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Home > Health Concerns > Tobacco > Research > Tobacco Use Statistics

Health Concerns

Overview of Historical Data, 1999-2009

Table 1 - Percentage of current smokers, by age group and sex, age 15+ years, Canada 1999 to 2009
Age Group
(years)		 Sex 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
15+ Both Sexes 25 24 22 21 21 20 19 19 19 18 18
Male 27 26 24 23 23 22 22 20 20 20 19
Female 23 23 20 20 18 17 16 17 18 16 16
 
15-19 Both Sexes 28 25 22 22 18 18 18 15 15 15 13
20-24 35 32 32 31 30 28 26 27 25 27 23
25-34 30 28 25 27 27 28 24 24 21 21 23
35-44 30 31 25 24 24 22 23 20 20 19 18
45-54 24 23 23 21 22 19 20 22 23 21 20
55+ 15 15 13 13 12 11 10 11 14 12 12
 
15-17 23 21 18 18 15 14 14 11 10 10 10
18-19 34 31 29 28 24 26 25 22 23 23 18
20-22 38 33 24 39 31 27 26 27 24 26 22
23-24 31 31 30 32 30 29 26 27 27 29 25
25+ 24 24 21 20 20 19 18 18 19 17 17
Table 2 - Percentage of current smokers, by province and age group, age 15+ years, Canada 1999 to 2009
Age Group
(years)		 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

^ Current smoking rate in 2009 is significantly different from 2008. All other changes between 2009 and 2008 are not significantly different.
Newfoundland and Labrador 15+ 28 28 26 24 23 22 21 22 21 20 21
15-19 30 28 22 22 22 21 19 16 17 15 16
20-24 37 40 41 36 34 34 28 33 31 28 29
25-44 35 38 32 30 29 29 23 28 26 25 28
45+ 21 16 18 18 17 15 18 17 18 17 16
 
Prince Edward Island 15+ 26 26 26 23 21 21 20 19 18 19 18
15-19 28 21 20 19 20 17 13 14 13 14 14
20-24 37 36 35 35 32 31 32 31 25 31 22^
25-44 30 33 31 30 26 27 26 25 20 21 21
45+ 19 19 21 16 16 16 15 15 17 17 16
 
Nova Scotia 15+ 29 30 25 25 22 20 21 22 20 20 20
15-19 30 25 27 20 18 20 13 15 13 14 14
20-24 37 37 31 34 35 33 27 33 29 26 30
25-44 36 38 31 31 26 19 30 29 24 24 24
45+ 21 22 19 21 18 14 15 16 18 17 17
 
New Brunswick 15+ 26 27 25 21 24 24 22 23 21 20 21
15-19 27 30 25 18 22 18 18 16 17 14 16
20-24 36 36 39 31 32 32 30 32 24 29 27
25-44 30 31 33 27 31 32 29 26 29 23 27
45+ 21 20 16 15 18 18 16 20 17 18 18
 
Quebec 15+ 30 28 24 26 25 22 22 20 22 19 21
15-19 36 30 29 32 26 24 23 18 17 17 18
20-24 39 38 32 36 36 34 32 30 32 31 30
25-44 33 34 31 28 30 28 26 19 25 23 22
45+ 25 21 16 24 19 16 18 19 19 15 19
 
Ontario 15+ 23 23 20 20 20 19 16 17 18 17 15
15-19 25 25 19 19 14 17 16 12 13 13 9
20-24 34 28 31 29 30 24 21 25 22 27 18^
25-44 29 28 21 24 23 26 22 21 18 18 17
45+ 16 17 17 14 16 12 11 12 18 14 15
 
Manitoba 15+ 23 26 26 21 21 21 22 20 20 21 19
15-19 29 25 28 23 20 21 20 20 20 17 18
20-24 32 37 37 33 29 26 33 32 31 25 25
25-44 30 31 30 25 28 23 26 24 24 25 23
45+ 14 19 20 16 14 18 18 15 15 18 15
 
Saskatchewan 15+ 26 28 25 21 24 22 22 24 24 20 22
15-19 31 24 27 29 28 25 25 21 22 20 18
20-24 32 36 38 34 34 29 36 31 31 27 28
24-44 31 37 30 26 28 28 26 30 30 23 28
45+ 19 20 19 13 19 15 16 19 19 17 18
 
Alberta 15+ 26 23 25 23 20 20 21 21 21 20 18
15-19 26 24 24 19 18 16 19 15 20 16 12
20-24 40 29 34 30 31 28 27 30 27 29 26
24-44 28 26 29 26 26 22 26 25 23 21 21
45+ 20 16 19 19 12 18 15 18 18 18 15
 
British Columbia 15+ 20 20 17 16 16 15 15 16 14 15 15
15-19 20 18 17 15 14 13 14 12 9 15 13
20-24 29 28 27 22 20 26 24 24 18 21 18
24-44 26 24 19 21 21 16 18 20 15 15 21
45+ 13 15 13 12 13 13 11 13 14 14 11
Table 3 - Percentage of daily smokers, by age group and sex, age 15+ years, Canada 1999 to 2009
Age Group
(years)		 Sex 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
15+ Both Sexes 21 20 18 18 17 15 15 14 15 13 14
Male 23 21 20 19 19 17 18 15 16 15 15
Female 19 18 16 16 14 13 12 13 14 12 12
15-19 Both Sexes 20 18 16 16 12 11 11 9 9 9 7
20-24 28 25 24 23 21 20 19 18 17 18 15
25-34 24 23 21 21 21 21 18 16 16 14 17
35-44 25 25 21 21 19 18 20 16 18 15 15
45-54 21 19 20 18 19 16 17 18 20 18 17
55+ 13 12 12 12 10 9 8 9 11 9 11
 
15-17 16 15 13 14 9 7 8 6 6 5 5
18-19 26 22 21 21 16 17 17 14 15 14 11
20-22 29 25 26 22 22 19 18 18 16 18 13
23-24 25 25 22 24 20 21 19 19 19 20 18
25+ 20 20 18 17 17 15 15 14 16 13 14
Table 4 - Percentage of daily smokers, by province and age group, age 15+ years, Canada 1999 to 2009
  Age Group
(years)		 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

* Moderate sampling variability, interpret with caution.

# High sampling variability - although an estimate may be determined from the table, data should be suppressed.

^ Daily smoking rate in 2009 is significantly different from 2008. All other changes between 2009 and 2008 are not significantly different.
Newfoundland and Labrador 15+ 24 24 22 21 19 17 17 17 18 16 16
15-19 21 21 15 18 17 12 14 11 12 10 12
20-24 30 32 31 31 27 25 23 24 21 20 21
25-44 30 34 27 25 23 23 17 15 22 21 21
45+ 18 15 17 16 14 12 15 14 15 14 14
 
Prince Edward Island 15+ 21 22 22 20 18 17 16 15 15 16 14
15-19 19 16 17 13 14 11 10 8 8 8 8
20-24 30 28 29 31 24 24 26 21 19 22 16
25-44 26 29 28 26 23 23 20 21 17 18 17
45+ 16 17 18 14 14 13 13 13 14 15 13
 
Nova Scotia 15+ 25 26 21 22 19 15 17 18 17 16 17
15-19 22 19 19 16 14 11 8 9 9 8 8
20-24 31 31 27 25 28 23 19 24 19 20 24
25-44 33 33 26 27 23 19 24 24 20 20 21
45+ 18 20 17 18 16 12 13 14 16 15 15
 
New Brunswick 15+ 22 23 22 19 21 21 18 19 18 17 18
15-19 19 23 19 13 17 13 13 10 12 11 12
20-24 29 29 32 25 27 23 22 22 19 21 22
25-44 26 28 29 24 27 28 25 22 24 19 22
45+ 18 18 15 14 16 16 13 17 14 16 15
 
Quebec 15+ 25 23 20 22 20 17 19 16 17 16 16
15-19 25 21 20 25 17 14 15 11 11 10 11
20-24 31 31 25 27 25 23 22 23 21 22 20
25-44 28 29 25 24 23 21 24 15 20 17 16
45+ 22 18 15 19 16 13 15 17 16 14 16
 
Ontario 15+ 19 18 16 16 16 14 13 12 15 12 12
15-19 18 17 14 13 8 10 9 7 8 7 5*
20-24 27 21 23 22 19 17 15 15 14 18 11^
25-44 24 22 17 20 18 20 18 16 15 12 13
45+ 13 13 15 12 14 9 10 10 15 11 12
 
Manitoba 15+ 19 22 21 17 16 16 17 15 15 16 15
15-19 22 19 23 15 12 14 13 10 11 9 10
20-24 24 31 26 25 22 18 25 22 21 17 19
25-44 24 27 25 20 22 18 20 18 17 19 18
45+ 13 16 16 14 11 15 14 12 14 15 12
 
Saskatchewan 15+ 21 25 21 17 20 18 18 18 19 16 18
15-19 23 19 20 21 22 15 16 12 13 11 9
20-24 27 31 30 25 24 23 28 25 21 20 17
24-44 26 33 25 19 22 24 23 23 23 20 25
45+ 16 19 16 12 16 13 13 15 17 14 16
 
Alberta 15+ 22 20 21 18 16 16 16 16 16 16 14
15-19 21 21 18 16 11 10 13 9 14 9 #
20-24 33 23 27 21 22 22 19 20 19 21 18
24-44 24 24 25 20 20 17 20 20 18 17 16
45+ 17 16 16 16 10 16 12 14 15 15 13
 
British Columbia 15+ 16 16 14 13 13 12 11 12 11 10 12
15-19 14 13 11 11 9 6 9 6 6 9 #
20-24 20 21 19 15 14 18 17 14 12 12 9*
24-44 20 19 15 16 15 12 12 12 13 11 18^
45+ 12 12 12 10 11 11 9 12 11 10 9
Table 5 - Percentage of current and daily smokers, by education, age 15+ years, Canada 1999 to 2009
  Educational Level 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Current Smoker Secondary 29 30 26 24 23 21 21 21 20 21 23
Completed Secondary 28 27 24 24 24 22 22 23 23 22 22
Completed College 23 25 22 21 22 21 20 19 20 19 16
Completed University 17 14 13 13 13 14 11 11 12 10 9
 
Daily Smoker Secondary 25 25 20 21 19 17 18 17 17 17 19
Completed Secondary 23 23 20 20 20 17 18 18 19 17 18
Completed College 19 19 19 16 17 16 17 14 16 14 12
Completed University 12 10 10 10 9 9 7 7 9 6 6

Table 6 - Average number of cigarettes smoked per day among daily smokers, by age group and sex, age 15+ years, Canada 1999 to 2009
Age Group
(years)		 Sex 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
15+ Both Sexes 17.4 16.8 16.2 16.4 15.9 15.2 15.7 15.5 15.5 14.9 14.5
Male 18.6 19.0 17.1 17.9 17.3 16.4 17.2 16.9 17.0 16.4 15.8
Female 15.9 14.4 15.0 14.8 14.0 13.8 13.7 13.8 13.7 13.0 12.9
15-19 Both Sexes 13.1 12.7 12.9 12.9 12.3 11.6 11.0 12.3 11.7 12.2 11.4
20-24 15.0 12.7 12.9 12.9 12.3 11.6 11.0 12.3 11.7 12.2 12.9
25-34 15.8 16.2 14.4 14.2 15.0 13.6 14.4 13.8 13.2 13.2 12.5
35-44 19.0 17.6 17.9 18.1 15.5 16.0 16.2 16.0 16.1 15.7 13.4
45-54 19.6 18.5 17.2 18.4 17.8 17.8 19.0 17.9 17.2 15.7 16.9
55+ 18.0 18.4 17.7 17.6 18.4 15.9 15.7 15.8 16.6 16.7 15.8
 
15-17 12.3 11.5 12.2 12.1 11.5 10.2 9.2 12.1 10.4 10.8 11.8
18-19 13.9 13.9 13.5 13.8 13.1 12.7 12.2 12.4 12.5 13.0 11.1
20-22 15.1 13.9 13.8 13.8 13.0 13.1 13.2 12.9 12.9 12.3 14.2
23-24 14.7 14.0 14.2 14.3 12.2 12.4 13.5 12.8 13.1 12.1 11.3
25+ 18.1 17.7 16.8 17.1 16.5 15.7 16.4 16.0 15.9 15.4 14.8
Table 7 - Percentage of children exposed at home to Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS), age 0 to 11 years, by province, Canada 1999 to 2009
  1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Canada 26 24 19 16 14 12 9 9 7 6 5
Newfoundland and Labrador 32 29 23 21 16 12 9 8 6 6 3
Prince Edward Island 29 25 26 17 16 13 12 9 7 6 5
Nova Scotia 31 28 22 21 16 13 13 11 7 6 5
New Brunswick 23 26 24 18 17 15 12 11 10 8 6
Quebec 39 36 38 26 25 23 17 18 14 12 11
Ontario 22 19 15 12 9 7 6 5 5 3 1
Manitoba 35 29 23 17 15 13 11 11 8 7 6
Saskatchewan 30 32 25 18 17 16 13 13 10 9 8
Alberta 25 21 19 15 11 9 8 9 6 6 4
British Columbia 11 15 9 6 6 4 4 3 4 3 2
Table 8 - Select CTUMS percentages, age 15+ years, Canada 1999 to 2009
Smoking status: 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

n/a - not asked in the survey

§ - Women age 20-44 years who are daily, nondaily or former smokers (who quit less than 5 years ago) and were pregnant in the last 5 years

¥ - Women age 20-44 years who were pregnant in the last 5 years and who reported that they had a spouse/partner

* Moderate sampling variability, interpret with caution.
Current smokers 25 24 22 21 21 20 19 19 19 18 18
Daily smokers 21 20 18 18 17 15 15 14 15 13 14
Nondaily smokers 4 5 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 4 4
Former smokers 25 26 27 25 26 26 28 27 28 29 27
Never smokers 49 50 49 54 53 55 54 54 53 53 56
Ever smokers 51 50 51 46 47 45 46 46 47 47 44
 
Quit attempts:
Attempted to quit past 12 months, daily smokers n/a 52 49 45 71 46 49 48 47 49 45
 
Smoking behaviour:
Smoked during first 5 min after waking, daily smokers 25 24 22 25 29 23 24 21 23 23 21
Smoked during first 30 min after waking, daily smokers 57 56 60 59 60 57 60 54 59 58 56
 
Children exposed to ETS:
Children age 0 to 11 years regularly exposed to ETS at home 26 24 19 16 14 12 9 9 7 6 5
Children age 12 to 17 years regularly exposed to ETS at home 32 31 27 23 19 19 16 14 13 11 10
Children age 0 to 17 years regularly exposed to ETS at home 28 27 22 19 16 15 12 11 10 8 7
 
Smoking and pregnancy§:
Smoked regularly during most recent pregnancy n/a n/a n/a 11 11* 8* 9* 10 10 9 9
Spouse smoked regularly during most recent pregnancy¥ n/a n/a n/a 13 12* 7* 7* 7* 3* 5 4*

Return to CTUMS 2009

Date Modified: 2011-02-07

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