Smoking Statistics and Research

Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States and produces substantial health-related economic costs on our society. Studies show that during 1995--1999, smoking caused approximately 440,000 premature deaths in the United States annually, and approximately $157 billion in annual health-related economic losses. The following tables illustrate the magnitude of health effects smoking can incur on the body and the financial toll it takes on our healthcare system.

TABLE 1. Annual deaths, smoking-attributable mortality (SAM), and years of potential life lost (YPLL), by cause of death and sex - United States, 1995-1999