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Nevada ranks near bottom of smoking list

Nevada ranks near bottom of smoking list
Posted at 10:36 AM, Oct 24, 2016
and last updated 2016-10-24 13:39:11-04

For once, we are happy not to be at the top of a list.

The American Cancer Society has released the latest results of its study on cigarette smoking among adults in the United States and number of deaths related to smoking and Nevada is not at the top.

RELATED: One-fourth of US cancer deaths linkedwith1 thing: smoking 

In fact, there are a multitude of states who rank much higher on the list and two of our neighbors are at the absolute bottom: Utah (lowest) and California. Nevada was ranked No. 40 out of 51. In this case, the lower on the list, the better.

Approximately 40 million people in the U.S. currently smoke.

Other interesting facts revealed by study:

  • More men than women smoke (18.8 percent versus 14.8 percent)
  • Most smokers are between the age of 25 and 44 (20 percent). Next highest age bracket is 45 to 64 (18 percent). A little more than 16 percent of teens smoke.
  • Non-Hispanic American Indians/Alaska Natives smoke more than any other group (29.2 percent). The next highest was non-Hispanic multiple-race individuals (27.9 percent)
  • More people with only a high school education or less than people with graduate degrees smoke (22.9 percent vs. 5.4 percent).
  • More people who live below poverty level smoke than those who do not (26.3 percent versus 15.2 percent)
  • Most smokers live in the Midwest (20.7 percent). Only 13.1 percent of the population in the West smokes.
  • More people who are disabled smoke than those who are not (21.9 vs. 16.1)
  • Lesbians/gays and bisexual adults are more likely to smoke than those who re straight (23.9 vs. 16.6)

The American Cancer Society says that more than 1 in 4 cancer deaths in the U.S. are related to smoking. The highest rate was for men was Arkansas (40 percent) and the highest rate for women was 29 percent in Kentucky.

RELATED: Cigarette smoking could burn your job prospects; cigarette smokers make less money

The lowest rate was in Utah -- 22 percent for men and 11 percent for women. Utah also has the highest number of Mormons, who don't drink or smoke.

Southern states overall have the highest rates of smoking-related deaths. Primarily because black men tend to smoke more than white men and Southern states have more blacks. In addition, people with lower levels of education also smoke more. In Kentucky, for example, only 50 percent of adults go on to college. So, a higher percentage of the state's population are smokers.

Death rates by ethnicity:

Men
Blacks -- 35 percent
Whites -- 30 percent
Hispanics -- 27 percent

Women
Whites -- 21 percent
Blacks -- 19 percent
Hispanics -- 12 percent

There were 167,000 cancer deaths related to smoking in 2014.

The results of the study were released Oct. 24.