Smoking rates in Victoria

Percentage of adult smokers (18 years+)

Year	Male	Female	Total
1983	36	28	32
1984	36	28	32
1985	35	28	31
1986	34	28	31
1987	33	28	31
1988	31	28	29
1989	31	27	29
1990	29	26	27
1991	29	25	27
1992	27	24	26
1993	28	24	26
1994	27	24	26
1995	28	23	25
1996	28	23	26
1997	28	23	25

1998	24	18	21
1999	24	19	21
2000	20	19	20
2001	22	19	20
2002	22	16	19
2003	17	16	16
2004	21	17	19
2005	20	17	18
2006	20	16	18
2007	18	16	17
2008	18	15	17

This table shows that the smoking rates for both men and women in Victoria have fallen over the past two decades. Due to the changes in the method of collecting data since 1998, the rates before and after this time cannot be directly compared. However, smoking rates have continued to fall since the new method was introduced, suggesting that the drop is not due solely to the change in method. The smoking rate dropped from 21% in 1998 to 17% in 2008. In 2008, males were more likely than females to be regular smokers.

References

Unpublished data, Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer, 2006.
McCarthy M, Abbott J, Durkin S, Wakefield M, Germain D. Smoking prevalence and consumption in Victoria: key findings from the 1998-2008 population surveys. CBRC Research Paper Series No. 39. Melbourne, Australia: Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer, The Cancer Council Victoria, May 2009.