Long-Term Follow-Up of Youth Access to Tobacco Laws' Impact on Smoking Prevalence

Abstract

The majority of adolescent smokers are able to purchase cigarettes even though laws prohibit the sale of cigarettes to minors. In the late 1980s, Woodridge, Illinois, became one of the first towns in the nation to demonstrate a sustained reduction in the ability of youth to purchase cigarettes. Almost 2 years after passage of this legislation, the percentage of regular smokers among seventh and eighth grade students had been reduced from 16% to 5%. Eight-year follow-up data in a sample of junior high school youth indicate that only 5% of youth who lived in Woodridge were regular smokers. These findings have important public health implications, particularly in light of recent federal legislation mandating that all states develop programs to reduce youth access to tobacco products and discussion of effective measures to reduce youth smoking rates as part of a comprehensive tobacco control bill.

Key Words:

• Tobacco laws
• smoking prevalence
• adolescent smokers
• youth smoking