Silver State leads the nation in smokers

Jace Radke

Friday, Nov. 3, 2000 | 11:17 a.m.

Nearly a third of all Nevada residents smoke, ranking the state as the worst in the country when it comes to lighting up, according to new statistics compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Nevada has consistently ranked high in percentage of smokers, but passing Kentucky for the top spot has some anti-smoking activists questioning the state's stance on an issue that is turning the Silver State into the smoker state.

Dr. Elizabeth Fildes, who runs the University of Nevada School of Medicine's Tobacco Users' Helpline, said that a smoking rate of 31.5 percent in Nevada shows that work needs to be done.

"It shows that we in the state didn't do the job," Fildes said. "The Centers for Disease Control recommended that states spend $13 million on cessation programs, and we got $3 million. I think it was a good start, and we hadn't even spent $3 million before we got the tobacco settlement.

"But the state has an incredible health need here, so I'd like to see more money for tobacco control."

Kentucky recorded the second highest smoking rate at 29.7 percent, according to the statistics collected for 1999. Ohio was third at 27.6 percent, with Utah (13.9 percent), Hawaii (18.6 percent) and California (18.7 percent) with the lowest percentage of smokers.

Daniele Dreitzer, spokeswoman at the Las Vegas office of the American Cancer Society, agrees that more money needs to be allocated by the state legislature if smoking is to be decreased.

"Unfortunately I can't say that I'm surprised," Dreitzer said. "Very little of the tobacco settlement money went toward creating an infrastructure, and without more communication and data gathering it's hard to move forward."

Kentucky launched its first statewide anti-smoking campaign this year by using $5.5 million of its national tobacco settlement share.

Dr. Donald Kwalick, chief health officer of the Clark County Health District, called the statistics troubling, but said it may not be as bad as it appears.

"It's disturbing because smoking is the most preventable cause of lung disease, emphysema and a number of other diseases," Kwalick said. "There is a plus or minus of about 3 percent on the data, so there may not have been much of a change at all here."

In 1998 Nevada ranked second with 30.4 percent, and Kentucky was first at 30.8 percent.

Tobacco use in the United States causes about 430,000 deaths each year, including an estimated 3,000 deaths from lung cancer among nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke.

"Environment plays a huge role," Dreitzer said. "The casinos and lifestyle in Las Vegas definitely makes a difference. Smoking is like any other addiction, and just like you wouldn't want to put an alcoholic in a casino where there's free drinks, you wouldn't want to put a smoker in an environment where people are smoking.

"In Las Vegas smoking is everywhere, so it's tough."

Education and events like the Nov. 16 Great American Smokeout that encourage smokers to quit for at least 24 hours are among the tools the health district and other organizations use to combat smoking. The Tobacco Users' Helpline can be reached at 1-888-86-nonic, and provides ways for people to get information, group counseling or additional help in quitting smoking.

While education helps, it can only go so far without funding, Fildes said.

"An increase in the tobacco tax would allow for more programs to be added," Fildes said. "Studies have shown that an increased tobacco tax results in more people quitting."