Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable illness and deaths in Georgia. About 10.1% of deaths among adults in Georgia are linked to smoking related illnesses. Most first use of cigarettes occurs by age 18 (87%), with nearly all-first use by 26 years of age (98%). Although cigarette smoking has declined significantly since 1964, very large disparities in tobacco use remain across different sub- groups of the population. Multiple environmental, psychological, and social factors have been associated with tobacco use, including race and ethnicity, age, SES, educational accomplishment, gender, and sexual orientation. These factors within the social environment have a huge influence on motivation to begin and to continue using tobacco products for not just the individual but also certain community group within the population. Established in 2000, Georgia Tobacco Use Prevention Program (GTUPP) is a program designed to meet the overall goal of reducing the health and economic burden associated with tobacco use for all members of the community. By working with various partners, GTUPP plans, implements and evaluates policy, systems, and environmental changes designed to reduce tobacco- related illnesses and deaths. Best practice strategies focus on the following goals: preventing the initiation of tobacco use among young people; promoting quitting among young people and adults (e.g. Georgia Tobacco Quit Line (GTQL); eliminating exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke; and identifying and eliminating the disparities related to tobacco use among various population groups.
Objective
To analyze tobacco use in Georgia to influence policy, systems and environmental changes as tools to reduce its burden on health outcomes