Less regular cigarettes and more e-cigarettes...a marked change in smoking rates

Tobacco use behavior has changed significantly, such as a decrease in the smoking rate of general cigarettes and an increase in the smoking rate of e-cigarettes.

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released key findings from its 2024 community health survey of 230,000 adults through 258 health centers nationwide.

This year, the combined use of cigarettes and e-cigarettes was 22.6%, up 0.4%p from last year, and the use of tobacco products, which slowed down during the COVID-19 pandemic, has increased for the third year since 2022.

Among them, the smoking rate of regular cigarettes was 18.9%, down 1.4% from a year ago, but the use rate of liquid and cigarette e-cigarettes was 8.7%, up 0.6% from the previous year.

Drinking rates have also been on the rise again since 2022, with the monthly drinking rate of 58.3% who drank more than once a month in the past year, 0.3%p higher than a year ago.

The high-risk drinking rate was 12.6 percent, with men drinking at least 7 cups and women drinking at least 5 cups a week at a single drinking party.

In addition, the obesity rate with a BMI of 25 or higher was 34.4%, up 0.7%p from the previous year.