Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey (CTUMS) 2012

The Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey (CTUMS) was developed to provide timely, reliable, and continual data on tobacco use and related issues. This section presents the CTUMS results for 2012.

During the past 14 years 1999-2012, CTUMS has reported a decline in the overall current smoking rate among Canadians aged 15 years and older from 25% in 1999 to 16% in 2012. The population aged 15 years and older increased by about 4.4 million Canadians, the number of current smokers has decreased by 1.5 million, former smokers increased by 1.9 million and never smokers increased by 4.0 million. Overall, we saw the population increase by about 15% while ever smokers (current and former combined) did not change.

Smoking Population, Age 15+, Canada, 1999 and 2012

Estimates may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding.

Total Population

Never and Ever Smokers, Aged 15+, Canada, 1999 and 2012

Text equivalent in table below
Total Population and Smoking Status Percentages and Counts for Canadians Aged 15 Years Older From 1999 and 2012
CTUMS Annual 2012 1999 2012
Population Percentage Population Percentage
Current Smoker
Includes daily smokers and non-daily smokers.
Former Smoker
Person who is not smoking; however, has smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their life.
Ever Smoker
Current and former smoker combined.
Never Smoker
Person who is not smoking and has not smoked 100 cigarettes in their life.

Never Smoker + Ever Smoker = Total Population

Total Population 24,260,326 100 28,680,393 100
Never Smokers 11,992,942 49 16,039,065 56
Ever Smokers 12,267,384 51 12,641,328 44
Former Smokers 6,145,392 25 8,011,341 28
Current Smokers 6,121,992 25 4,629,987 16
Ever Smokers

Current and Former Smokers, Aged 15+, Canada, 1999 and 2012

Text equivalent in table below
Ever Smokers Broken Down Into Smoking Status for Canadians Aged 15 Years Older From 1999 and 2012
CTUMS Annual 2012 1999 2012
Population Percentage Population Percentage
Current Smoker
Includes daily smokers and non-daily smokers.
Former Smoker
Person who is not smoking; however, has smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their life.
Ever Smoker
Current and former smoker combined.
Never Smoker
Person who is not smoking and has not smoked 100 cigarettes in their life.

Never Smoker + Ever Smoker = Total Population

Ever Smokers 12,267,384 100 12,641,328 100
Former Smokers 6,145,392 50 8,011,341 63
Current Smokers 6,121,992 50 4,629,987 37
Daily Smokers 5,071,670 47 3,399,566 27
Occasional Smokers 1,050322 9 1,230,421 10
Current Smokers

Daily and Occasional Smokers, Aged 15+, Canada, 1999 and 2012

Text equivalent in table below
Current Smokers Broken Down Into Daily and Occasional, for Canadians Aged 15 Years Older From 1999 and 2012
CTUMS Annual 2012 1999 2012
Population Percentage Population Percentage
Current Smoker
Includes daily smokers and non-daily smokers.
Former Smoker
Person who is not smoking; however, has smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their life.
Ever Smoker
Current and former smoker combined.
Never Smoker
Person who is not smoking and has not smoked 100 cigarettes in their life.

Never Smoker + Ever Smoker = Total Population

Current Smokers 6,121,992 100 4,629,987 100
Daily Smokers 5,071,670 83 3,399,566 73
Occasional Smokers 1,050322 17 1,230,421 27

Current Smoking Prevalence by Age, Canada, 1985-2012

1985-2000

Current Smoking Prevalence by Age, Canada, 1985-2000

Text equivalent in table below

2001-2008

Current Smoking Prevalence by Age, Canada, 2001-2008

Text equivalent in table below

2009-2012

Current Smoking Prevalence by Age, Canada, 2009-2012

Text equivalent in table below

Current Smoking Prevalence from 1985 to 2012 for Canadians Aged 15 Years and Older, Youth Aged 15-19, and Young Adults Aged 20-24.
Year Prevalence Rate (%)
Total 15-19 years 20-24 years
1985/91
General Social Survey Supplement
1994 (May)
Survey on Smoking in Canada (SOSIC)
1994/95, 96/97, 98/99
National Population Health Survey (public use files, hence numbers may differ slightly from published Highlight reports)
1999-2011
Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey, Annual Results
1985 35 27 43
1991 31 23 40
1994 31 27 40
1994-1995 31 28 35
1996-1997 29 29 35
1998-1999 28 28 37
1999 25 28 35
2000 24 25 32
2001 22 22 32
2002 21 22 31
2003 21 18 30
2004 20 18 28
2005 19 18 26
2006 19 15 27
2007 19 15 25
2008 18 15 27
2009 18 13 23
2010 17 12 22
2011 17 12 21
2012 16 11 20

Annual Results

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