Indiana's smoking rate never lower;
'hard work' given credit
Brent Shalley of Dayton stepped outside McCord Candies in downtown Lafayette for a smoke break Tuesday afternoon while making a soda pop run.
The 18-year-old said he's felt societal pressure to quit. "They don't make it as easy to be able to smoke out in public," he said.
In 2008, Lafayette enacted a smoking ban that applies to workplaces and restaurants, but not taverns. A year prior, West Lafayette imposed a similar smoking ban that also applies to bars. Such local laws have contributed to the state's decline in smoking rates, according to state health officials.
"That certainly contributes to more adults wanting to quit smoking (and) staying smoke-free ... as well as helping youth stay tobacco-free as they move into young adulthood," said Karla Sneegas, assistant commissioner of Tobacco Prevention and Cessation at the Indiana State Department of Health. "We know that all of this hard work at the community level has been critically important."
The percentage of Indiana residents 18 years old and older who smoke has dropped 6.2 percentage points within the last decade, reaching a historic low of 21.2 percent in 2010, according to data released Tuesday by the state department of health.
The new smoking rate is the lowest since the state began collecting such data in 1984. However, it's still higher than the 17.3 percent national average.
Sneegas said another reason for the decline has been the state push for local outreach to smokers. That includes resources such as the Indiana Tobacco Quitline.
The state also created local programs, such as the Tobacco Free Partnership of Tippecanoe County, which receive state funding to educate the public about the effects of tobacco use and help smokers quit the habit. The partnership was created in 2002, according to its website.
Jessica Black, coordinator for the partnership, said she was not surprised to hear that the smoking rates have declined.
"The state is creating an environment of wellness where smoking is no longer the norm," she said.
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