A Critical Role in Deterring Smoking Both in the US and in the UK Research Paper

A Critical Role in Deterring Smoking Both in the US and in the UK - Research Paper Example Particularly, according to statistical data, the number of adult smokers in the U.K went down by approximately one million between 2006 and 2007 (Easton, 2009). However, contrary to this observation, the number of heavy smokers has increased to 29% from 24% during the same period and those who planned to quit reduced by approximately 5% from 72% (Easton, 2009). The fall represents an estimated 1.2 million people. The U.K also required the manufacturers to print health warnings on the cigarette packs in an attempt to deter people from smoking. According to the most recent statistics, the U.K has 22% and 19% male and female smokers respectively. Although the U.K has approximately 10 million smokers, there are 15 million ex-smokers indicating that the ban has been effective (Smoking Statistics, 2013). Nevertheless, the U.K has been receiving some troubling news concerning the number of children starting smoking, which stood at 200,000 annually (Cancer Research UK, 2013). On the other ha nd, the U.S has more smokers than the U.K. According to a 2012 statistic, the U.S has at least 42 million smokers, which represents 18.1% of the overall population (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014a, p. 30-32). This number comprises of adults alone or individuals with at least 18 years of age. Of the overall U.S smokers, 78% were heavy smokers. According to race, the American Indians led the smokers with 21% and the behaviour is more common among the males than females with males taking on almost 21% while females represent 15.8%.