Health Indicator: Adult Smoking Rates in Denver

Denver Public Health regularly measures smoking rates among adults who live in Denver. We measure this using the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey (BRFSS), a telephone survey led by state health departments. The BRFSS includes questions on topics like smoking, car safety, and obesity. Denver estimates from this annual survey are reported every two years because of small sample sizes.

Nationally, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Healthy People program provides science-based, 10-year national objectives for improving the health of all Americans. The Healthy People 2020 (HP 2020) goal is to reduce the national smoking average to 12% by year 2020. Our goal of decreasing smoking rates among adults in Denver will help reach this national goal.

It seemed that the smoking rate in Denver was decreasing between 2003 and 2010. We think this was partly caused by new laws which:

• Raised the tobacco product tax by $0.64 per pack of cigarettes (2004).
• Passed the Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act to reduce secondhand smoke exposure in public places (2006).

Although the 2011/2012 smoking rates are higher than 2009/2010, this could be because cell phones were added to the survey in 2009/2010. Cell phones were added because more people began using them as their main, or only, telephone. This established a new baseline in 2011. As a result, we need more data to see if smoking rates are actually decreasing.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention list several strategies proven to reduce smoking, including:

• Referral to cessation services. Smokers who use nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), crave-reducing medications, and support services are more likely to quit and stay that way than those who quit cold-turkey.
• Running advertising campaigns. Mass media campaigns motivate smokers to quit and change attitudes about tobacco use, even among people who don't use tobacco.
• Restricting youth access. Making it harder for youth to obtain tobacco products prevents them from ever starting to smoke.
• Passing laws to protect people from secondhand smoke. Making more apartments and worksites smoke-free reduces the number of people exposed to secondhand smoke.

• The Colorado QuitLine serves as the region's primary referral resource for those who are ready to quit smoking. It offers individuals one-on-one counseling over the phone and nicotine replacement therapy, a combination proven to result in higher success rates in quitting.
• Denver Health and University of Colorado Behavioral Health offer Tobacco Cessation Clinics at Denver Health. The clinic uses intensive counseling, behavioral interventions, and a personalized medication plan. Because of the Affordable Care Act, which reduced out-of-pocket costs for preventative care, this service is affordable for Denver Health patients who want to quit.
• Mass media campaigns, such as the KS 107.5 radio campaign called “Who’s Smokin’ Who?”,are used to stop teens from beginning to smoke. Tactics involving creating videos and taking text pledges are incorporated into campaigns to encourage youth involvement.

• Boys and Girls Club of Metro Denver
• Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
• Colorado QuitLine
• CU Behavioral Health
• Department of Public Health and Environment
• Denver Health
• Denver Health Community Health Service Clinics