Most smokers want to quit

The vast majority of smokers would like to give up the habit but consider themselves addicted to cigarettes. The poll found that most smokers - 75 percent - have made serious attempts to quit in the past, but had to make one or two serious attempts before finally quitting. The poll further found that the extent of smoking had not changed dramatically since the late 1980s, when more than three in 10 Americans smoked. From 1944 through 1974, Gallup measured smoking rates at 40 percent or higher.

Fifty-five percent of smokers said they smoked less than a pack of cigarettes a day; 36 percent smoked a pack a day - 20 cigarettes; while 8 percent reported smoking more than a pack a day. The average smoker puffs on 14 cigarettes each day, according to the poll.

In addition to the 25 percent of Americans who currently smoke, another 26 percent said they used to smoke in the past. That leaves 49 percent of Americans who have never smoked. The poll found that Americans with less formal education were more likely to report being a current smoker than those who had completed college.

Gallup's findings were based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected US sample of 1 007 adults, aged 18 years and older, conducted from July 6-9. – (HealthDayNews)

July 2006