Only about 1 in 5 Canadians now smokes, the Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey indicates. This decrease to 22% of the population aged 15 and older represents a 37% decline from the 35% level set in 1985.
The data, collected during a telephone survey of 43 973 households in 2001, indicate that smoking is declining within all age groups. It remains most common among males aged 20 to 24, 35% of whom smoke, but has declined to 22.5% among teenagers.
In British Columbia, the smoking rate has been cut in half (17% vs. 33%) since 1985, and in Quebec it has plummeted to 24% from 40%. Today BC and Ontario (20%) have the lowest rates, while Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Manitoba share the highest rate, 26%. — CMAJ