Tobacco and Other Nicotine Products
How does tobacco affect health?
Tobacco use contributes to death and disease, and is the most preventable cause of these two health outcomes. The nicotine in tobacco is an addictive substance. Other chemicals in tobacco are the cause of some of the most severe health effect of tobacco use. Tobacco smoking has been linked to chronic bronchitis, emphysema and lung cancer as well as heart disease, heart attack and stroke. Smokeless tobacco or chewing tobacco has been associated with mouth and other cancers.
E-cigarettes
What are e-cigarettes?
Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are devices that can be used to simulate smoking and they produce an aerosol of nicotine and/or other substances. The e-cigarette aerosol that users inhale and exhale can expose both the user and those around them to other harmful substances, including heavy metals, volatile organic compounds, and ultrafine particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs.
Little is known about the safety or efficacy of e-cigarettes as they have not been approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) and are not currently regulated. Since they’re not regulated, e-cigarette ingredients are not tested for safety and manufacturers do not have to list their ingredients or ensure products are accurately labeled. It is difficult for consumers to know what e-cigarette products contain. For example, some e-cigarettes marketed as containing zero percent nicotine have been found to contain nicotine.
In Winnebago County, the rates of smoking tobacco and using e-cigarettes have remained stable over the years for adults.
Youth & Tobacco
Cigarette Smoking & E-cigarette Use
According to the 2018 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), cigarette smoking among Winnebago County high school students is at an all-time low, but e-cigarette use continues to rise. E-cigarette use increased at an alarming rate from 21% of high school students in 2016 reporting e-cigarette use in the past 30 days to 29% in 2018. E- cigarette use was not asked prior to 2016.
Tobacco Sales to Youth
The Wisconsin Wins campaign is a statewide initiative aimed to decrease youth access to tobacco and other nicotine products. The Wisconsin Department of Health Services contracts with local partners to conduct investigations to establish retailer compliance with the law. During these tobacco compliance checks, youth under the age of 18 attempt to purchase tobacco and other nicotine products from retailers.
In 2018, 80 tobacco compliance checks were completed throughout Winnebago County. There were five sales to minors, totaling 6.3% of all checks. This percentage of tobacco sales to minors is comparable to that of Outagamie County (6.8%) our neighboring county to the north. Winnebago County does have a lower percentage of tobacco sales to youth than surrounding, rural counties such as Fond du Lac (8.9%), Waushara (11.4%), Waupaca (11.4%), and Calumet (12%).
For more information about this data, visit http://www.wiwins.org/.
Smoking & Pregnancy
Smoking while pregnant has been linked to poor mother and child health. Miscarriage, stillborn births, premature births and low birth weights, tend to occur more often among pregnant women who smoke cigarettes compared to pregnant women who do not smoke. In addition, children born of women who smoke while pregnant experience learning and behavioral problems.
