DHSS Press Release |
Date: November 6, 2003 DHSS-118-2003 |
| Vincent P. Meconi, Secretary Karryl McManus, Deputy Secretary (302) 255-9047, Pager (302) 247-2116 |
Contact: Heidi Truschel-Light Phone: (302) 744-4907 Pager: (302) 247-1560 |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CLEAN INDOOR AIR ACT A SUCCESS, SURVEY SAYS
Most Delawareans support measures such as the state's Clean Indoor Air Act, according to a survey released today by Delaware's Division of Public Health. The Tobacco Attitudes and Media Survey found that 86 percent of state residents believe people should be protected from secondhand smoke. The survey, which included smokers and non-smokers, was administered last spring to 1,147 adult residents.
Survey highlights include:
- 75 percent - three quarters - of adult Delawareans do not smoke. The same percentage was found in Delaware's 2002 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS).
- 24 percent - nearly one quarter - of smokers do not smoke every day.
- 41 percent of Delaware's adult smokers consider quitting. Nearly 70 percent of those who smoke occasionally consider quitting.
Since the implementation of the Clean Indoor Air Act, Nov. 27, 2002:
- 28 percent of adults surveyed said they are more likely to dine at local restaurants (9 percent said they are less likely)
- 15 percent of adults surveyed said they are more likely to go out to local bars (11 percent said they are less likely)
- 8 percent of adults surveyed said they are more likely to go to local casinos (7 percent said they are less likely)
- 38 percent of Delawareans are exposed to secondhand smoke at home.
Several studies, including the 1996 Harvard Report on Cancer Prevention, determined that three in ten cancer deaths are attributable to tobacco. Reducing secondhand smoke exposure and increasing the number of people who attempt to stop smoking are two goals of A Plan for Tobacco-free Delaware, a multi-agency blueprint for reducing tobacco use and its health effects in Delaware. Secondhand smoke is classified as a Group A carcinogen by the Environmental Protection Agency, causing lung cancer and increasing the risk of heart disease in nonsmokers. Exposure to secondhand smoke has been estimated to result in at least 38,000 annual deaths in the U. S. and over 1 million illnesses in children. These include ischemic heart disease, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, low birth weight births, asthma, acute lower respiratory illness and middle ear infections, according to the National Cancer Institute.
The Tobacco Attitudes and Media Survey was conducted by the University of Delaware for Delaware's Division of Public Health. For a copy of the report, call 302-744-4544.
Delaware Health and Social Services is committed to improving the quality of the lives of Delaware's citizens by promoting health and well-being, fostering self-sufficiency, and protecting vulnerable populations.
