Medscape: Adults with mental illness have a smoking rate that is 70% higher than their counterparts with no mental illness, highlighting the need for increased access to prevention and cessation efforts in this vulnerable population, a new report suggests.
A report released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in collaboration with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) showed that 36% of the 45.7 million Americans with some type of mental illness are cigarette smokers, compared with only 21% of adults who do not have a mental illness.
"Smokers with mental illness, like other smokers, want to quit and can quit," CDC director Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, said in a release. "Stop-smoking treatments work — and it's important to make them more available to all people who want to quit."
Combined data from SAMHSA's 2009–2011 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) were used to calculate national and state estimates of cigarette smoking among adults aged 18 years and older who reported having any mental illness. Mental illness was defined as having a diagnosable mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder, excluding developmental and substance use disorders, in the past 12 months.
The report also showed that smoking prevalence is especially high among younger adults, Native Americans (including Native Alaskans), those living below the poverty line, and those with lower levels of education. Differences also exist across states, with prevalence ranging from 18.2% in Utah to 48.7% in West Virginia.
The authors note that the public health implications of the report's findings include enhancing efforts to reduce smoking in this population.
"Proven population-based prevention strategies should be extended to persons with mental illness, including implementing tobacco-free campus policies in mental health facilities. Primary care and mental health-care providers should routinely screen patients for tobacco use and offer evidence-based cessation treatments. Given that persons with mental illness are at risk for multiple adverse behavioral and health outcomes, tobacco cessation will have substantial benefits, including a reduction in excess morbidity and mortality attributed to tobacco use," they write.
According to the CDC, cigarette smoking continues to be the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States and throughout the world. It is responsible for an estimated 443,000 deaths in the United States each year.
For assistance in quitting, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669) or visit www.smokefree.gov. Also, visit BeTobaccoFree.gov for information on quitting and on preventing children from using tobacco.
MMWR. 2013;62:1-7.