Here's the latest news on teen smoking in MN from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) in a news release they sent out yesterday, December 10, 2008. You can check out today's article in the Star Tribune too.

From MDH:

Tobacco use among Minnesota teens continues to decline
While female high school students smoke less, rate among males stays flat

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) today announced results of a new survey showing that tobacco use among Minnesota's teens continues to decline. The 2008 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey provides a wide range of data on tobacco use among teens over the past three years.

Among the findings:

• The percentage of middle school students who used any tobacco products in the past 30 days fell from 9.5 percent to 6.9 percent.
• The percentage of middle school students who smoked cigarettes in the past 30 days fell from 5.2 to 3.4 percent.
• The percentage of high school students using any tobacco products fell from 29.3 percent to 27.0 percent.
• The percentage of high school students who smoked cigarettes in the past 30 days fell from 22.4 to 19.1 percent.

These numbers mean that 12,000 fewer high school and middle school students are using tobacco today than in 2005. Unfortunately, 85,000 students continue to use tobacco. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly one-third of these teens will eventually die from smoking-related diseases if they continue smoking into adulthood.

The new Freedom to Breathe Act is likely helping to discourage youth tobacco use, according to Dr. Jane Korn, a chronic disease epidemiologist with MDH. "Smoke-free laws create a positive example for young people and lead to decreased smoking," said Korn. She noted that nearly 90 percent of the middle school students surveyed believe that smoking should never be allowed inside their homes, their vehicles, at workplaces and in indoor public places. Support among high school students ranges from 71 percent for vehicles to 81 percent for indoor public places.

Korn expressed concern about several findings in the survey.

• While tobacco use and smoking have declined substantially for female high school students since 2005, the rates have not changed for males.
• The use of menthol cigarettes by students has increased sharply. This may be due to the fact that menthol masks the harshness and irritation younger smokers feel when they inhale cigarette smoke, making it easier for them to start smoking.
• The tobacco industry spends approximately $228 million every year marketing their products in Minnesota, and they continue to release new products to lure potential smokers.

"While most of the news in our survey is good, we need to pay special attention to a number of the findings," Korn said. "Over the coming months, we will take a close look at all of the findings and determine how we can make sure the rates continue to decline." 

• mn
• teen
• smoking
• rates
• rates