How many smokers??
 

I recently saw that in 1999, according to the ACDE ( American Council on Drug Education), 23% of Americans smoked.

That number honestly surprised me. I would have expected it to be much higher, say 1 in 3 or 1 in 3.5. I also noticed on a recent thread that this was one of the 10 questions asked as an identifier about yourself. I found that pretty interesting as well. So how many of you smoke.

I was a ten pack-year smoker. March 1 will be the third anniversary of my quit date.

I smoked from 16 until 26ish...

i started when smokes were $1.65/pack... quit when they hit $2.50. Now they are like $6 here in the city.

I smoke, I've tried to quit a number of times. Each time I come back to it again. I'm afraid that I won't quit until I don't have a choice.

Ten packs? In a year? That's like...what...4.2 cigarettes a week? I smoke that many on my way to the car in the morning. :D

Seriously, though, I go through probably just under a pack a day.

I smoked from 17 'till 20 or so. I quit cold turkey. One day while walking to class, I decided that my cigarette tasted bad. I put it out and never lit another one. I hadn't planned on quitting. It's been 8 years.

I still smoke a cigar every once in a while.

Never smoked in my life - can't stand the smell.

I quit in 1991.

never smoked. My dad used to smoke 40-60 a day though.

1 pack a day now; used to be 2 - 2 1/2 packs a day until auntphil got her hooks into me 3 years ago...i like to say it's my only vice...

I will quit the day after I die.

(hangs my head) I still, for the shame of it all, smoke. Not ready to quit yet. Eventually maybe.

never smoked, know people who do.. In the end it's just a choice. If someone really wants to quit they will. I will never understand how addicting it is. So it's not right of me to tell people to quit, or tell them its easy, because its not.

I have never smoked or had the urge to. I hate the smell of cigarette smoke.

My girlfriend is trying to quit...she says she'll do so after she finishes this last pack, but I think that's a sign she won't.

Erm, it depends on what we're smoking. :S

i smoke occasionally whenever i get drunk or am riding around with my friends that are smokers. i've never been a "smoker" though, i'll just smoke one every now and then.

Same :)

I do on occasion, if feeling nervous because of a big event or if I just need to relax and mellow out. Even then, I limit myself to 3 in a day, cuz I just don't have the money or desire to smoke more ;)

Hate the way it makes my lungs feel.... I oughtta probably quit the herb along with cigs, or just get a good quality vaporizer...

hmm.

Its been about a year for me since I quit. I was smoking about a half pack a day when I first started, then went to a full pack, then full pack plus, then down to a pack lasting me about a week. I started when I was 14 and quit when I was 26. I just decided that I didnt want one anymore and after I finished the last smoke in a pack I said that was it.

Occasional cigar, no cigs. Half the time I don't inhale the cigar smoke, it's just for the taste.

I don't really smoke, other than the occasional cigar (about once every 3 months)

I hope I never get addicted to nicotine, i'm not much of a willpower person.

Never smoked because Im weak..once I start, and if I like it I might never quit. And of course the obviouse "Its bad for you" stuff, which I believe in entirely. Oddly enough, one year, I had a craving for it, just the "Im bored and could use a smoke". But why start when you dont need to?

40 - 60 CIGS A DAY! wow thats unbelievable... id talk to ur dad about that if i were u

Pack-years is a long-term measurement of smoking volume.

A pack a day for ten years is ten pack-years. Two packs a day for ten years is twenty pack-years.

I smoked roughly a pack a day from ages 16 through 26.

Never smoked. Never will. Sorry, but I just don't understand at all why people do it... cannot stand the smell either.

My father used to smoke. I don't really know when he started, nor can I remember how much he smoked. But he quit maybe 10 years ago? Partially cause of me. I think I was ragging on him to stop smoking, along with my mom... showing him pictures from my book from health class in middle school of healthy lungs versus diseased lungs.

Guess what. If you smoke, you're a smoker. You're very likely addicted at a low level. It's largely a psychological addiction, so certain environments (drinking, riding around) trigger the psychological need.

I've never smoked. Never had many friends who did so the temptation wasn't very great fortunately. I've seen my brother struggle with it and try to quit a number of times. I've talked to a friend who did manage to quit and has no desire to go back to it. I don't have a desire to try it and get stuck. If I want to calm down I can turn so something else less addictive and more healthy, like herbal tea or meditation. I count myself lucky to not have been offered a cig once or tried it once.

Started in high school and smoked most of the way through college. Quit about 10 years ago, haven't really missed it much.

Although occasionally, I will have a re-lapse. Especially when drinking. I smoke a cigar once in a while while golfing too.

I started in high school cuz all the cool kids did. What an idiot. Quiting was really hard, but my dad quit because I started smoking, and someone told me something really horrible so I jsut quit cold turkey. I get cravings now and then but I try not to have any cigs around me. Now I can go to the gym and dance all night no prob.

I smoked 1 1/2 to 3 packs a day for 19 years. Then I pulled my head out and quit. Jan 13, 2000 was my last cig.

I smoke and have for 12 years. I keep making excuses as to when I'm going to quit such as " when I graduate from school" This has yet to work considering I am now getting ready to graduate for the third time. I'm obviously not ready to stop.

Tried it in HS, got my dumb ass busted by my parents. Quit cold turkey. Never will I go back, I just can't stand the smell on a smoker's breath or the odor that emanates from them.

I've never smoked. I've always hated the smell and the look of it so much that I've never even been tempted to try it. If I had a choice I would never come near it.

Same!

My ex use to "sneak" smoking. Whenever he did that and slept in the same room as me, I'd be sick for days. Just not my thing.

Not I

I'd be interested in knowing the age range for that study.

damn, that's gotta be kinda expensive after awhile. i smoke around a pack every 1 to 2 weeks. of course i also share my cigarettes and i tend to smoke double time when i'm smokin somethin other than tobacco or drinkin.

I'm sort of quitting at the moment...
I'm very half-assed about it.

I smoke a pack a week or so.

I started smoking when I was really drunk. Then I'd smoke when I was moderately drunk. Then nicely buzzed. Then after 1-2 beers. Then when I was stressed. And so on..

Lately I've been pretty stressed so I go through about a half pack a day. I consider that pretty heavy.

I always hear about people going through a pack or more a day, and that's incredible to me. There's more cigs in a pack than waking hours in a day unless you're an insomniac. If you work in a public building you have to step outside, and taking a break every hour or more is frowned upon in most work environments. Which means between work and bed time smoke must be pouring out of your friggin' ears! :)