Youth Smoking Status

In a 2005-2006 survey of more than 20,000 Simcoe Muskoka students in Grades 9-12, 18% (17.4%, 18.4%) reported they were current (daily or occasional) smokers.

Smoking rates increase with grade. Of those surveyed, 10% (9.2%, 10.8%) of Grade 9 students reported to be current smokers, of which 4% (3.4%, 4.4%) smoked daily and 6% (5.5%, 6.8%) smoked occasionally. The number of current smokers jumps significantly to 27% (25.8%, 28.5%) in Grade 12, of which 16% (14.5%, 16.7%) smoke daily and 12% (10.6%, 12.5%) smoke occasionally.

In Simcoe Muskoka, there is a significant difference between male and female youth smokers. Female students make up the larger proportion of current smokers at 19% (18.4%, 20.0%), compared with 17% (15.9%, 17.4%) of male students who smoke.