Report details smoking trends

By Karen Blakeman
Advertiser Staff Writer

One in five people in Hawai'i smoke, and the greatest numbers of adult smokers in the state are found among young men, Native Hawaiians, Neighbor Island residents and people with low incomes, according to a report being released today by the state Department of Health.

Among residents under age 18, smokers are apt to be girls, a Health Department official said.

The report, "Smoking and Tobacco Use in Hawai'i: Facts, Figures and Trends," traces smoking and tobacco trends in the state.

Most of those trends are similar to those seen nationally, according to Julian Lipsher, director of the state Health Department's Tobacco Prevention and Education Project.

Lipsher said tobacco company advertising and promotion campaigns target specific groups, including girls, minorities, people in low-income groups and people with less education.

"The tobacco industry does a very good job of understanding its markets and targeting them," he said, pointing to ads in magazines that show well dressed, thin and popular women using tobacco.

Here in Hawai'i, he said, local advertising often promotes menthol cigarettes, which are more popular here than on the Mainland.

Hawai'i high school student, according to the tobacco use report, are more likely to smoke menthol cigarettes than non-menthol brands. Seven of 10 high school students in Hawai'i have tried smoking, and 13 percent of high school students smoke regularly.

In the workplace, 11 percent of workers on O'ahu reported being exposed to cigarette smoke while working. On the Neighbor Islands, 17 percent reported being exposed. Maui does not have a smoke-free workplace law, except in restaurants, according to the report.

The general excise tax in Hawai'i has increased dramatically in recent years, from 60 cents in 1997 to $1.30 per pack beginning in July of this year — the seventh-highest rate in the nation.

A tax stamp introduced in 2001 greatly reduced the number of smuggled cigarettes sold in the state and increased the tax income by $20 million over 2000, according to the report.

In 2002, the State Department of Taxation reported that 53,871,915 packs of cigarettes were sold, down from 54,797,147 in 1997. Tax revenue from cigarette sales in 2002 totaled $64,646,298, compared to $32, 878,288 in 1997

Lipsher said smoking contributes to 1,100 deaths each year in Hawai'i — 16 percent of the total number of deaths in the state. He said smoking costs $525 million a year in medical expenses and lost productivity.

The Health Department report will be released during a conference that will examine social justice as an aspect of tobacco use today at the Hilton Hawaiian Village.

Health Department officials said it will also be released on the department's Web site at www.hawaii.gov/doh.

Reach Karen Blakeman at 535-2430 or kblakeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.