| Age (years) | All persons | Persons who ever smoked daily | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First tried a cigarette * | Began smoking daily ** | First tried a cigarette * | Began smoking daily ** | |||||
| Women | Men | Women | Men | Women | Men | Women | Men | |
| <12 | 8.0 (±1.8) | 12.8 (±2.4) | 1.1 (±0.8)§ | 1.3 (±0.8)§ | 10.3 (±2.9) | 13.1 (±4.2) | 2.7 (±1.8) | 3.4 (±2.1) |
| <14 | 23.4 (±2.7) | 26.8 (±3.1) | 4.6 (±1.4) | 3.8 (±1.4) | 34.5 (±4.8) | 31.4 (±5.4) | 11.4 (±3.4) | 10.2 (±3.5) |
| <16 | 41.6 (±3.1) | 46.0 (±3.5) | 12.0 (±2.0) | 8.5 (±1.8) | 62.6 (±5.0) | 57.9 (±5.9) | 29.7 (±4.6) | 22.8 (±4.7) |
| <18 | 55.6 (±3.1) | 60.0 (±3.5) | 22.9 (±2.7) | 18.3 (±2.7) | 80.6 (±4.2) | 80.8 (±4.6) | 56.7 (±5.1) | 49.2 (±5.9) |
| <19 | 61.5 (±3.0) | 65.8 (±3.4) | 28.0 (±2.9) | 23.5 (±3.0) | 89.5 (±3.0) | 88.3 (±3.7) | 69.4 (±4.7) | 63.1 (±5.8) |
| <20 | 63.5 (±3.0) | 68.8 (±3.3) | 29.6 (±2.9) | 26.5 (±3.2) | 91.8 (±2.7) | 90.8 (±3.4) | 73.3 (±4.5) | 71.2 (±5.4) |
| <25 | 69.3 (±2.8) | 74.4 (±3.1) | 36.9 (±3.1) | 34.8 (±3.4) | 97.7 (±1.2) | 97.8 (±2.4) | 91.6 (±2.6) | 93.5 (±3.1) |
| <30 | 70.8 (±2.8) | 76.0 (±3.0) | 39.1 (±3.1) | 36.8 (±3.5) | 99.7 (±0.3) | 100.0 (±0.0) | 97.0 (±1.6) | 98.9 (±1.1) |
| < 39 | 71.6 (±2.7) | 76.2 (±3.0) | 40.3 (±3.1) | 37.2 (±3.5) | 100.0 (±0.0) | 100.0 (±0.0) | 100.0 (±0.0) | 100.0 (±0.0) |
Respondents were asked, "How old were you the first time you smoked a cigarette, even one or two puffs?"
Respondents were asked, "How old were you when you first started smoking cigarettes every day?"
Estimate should be interpreted with caution because of the small number of respondents.Source: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, public use data tape, 1998 .
From: Chapter 2. Patterns of Tobacco Use Among Women and Girls
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