From Your Health Journal…..”We always like to share good health news, especially when it comes to children. A great article from the Alexandria News which states a 10-Year Drop In Smoking Among Virginia High School Students. The report claims the percentage of high school students in Virginia who are regular smokers has declined by more than 55 percent – from 28.6 percent in 2001 to 13 percent in 2011. This is great news to share. So many children begin this habit without fully understanding the long term health effects on their bodies, until it is too late, and they become hooked…..More than 2,600 public middle school and high school students were surveyed during 2011 for this biennial statewide study. Please visit the Alexandria News to view the complete article.”

From the article…..

Latest Virginia Youth Tobacco Survey Shows Major Decline in Tobacco Use

Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resources Dr. Bill Hazel and the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth (VFHY) announced Thursday that youth smoking rates in Virginia have plummeted to the lowest point in a decade.

The percentage of high school students in Virginia who are regular smokers has declined by more than 55 percent – from 28.6 percent in 2001 to 13 percent in 2011, according to the results of the latest Virginia Youth Tobacco Survey. Nationally, an estimated 18.1 percent of high school students are regular cigarette smokers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS).

Smoking among Virginia middle school students declined by more than 70 percent during the same period, from 10.6 percent in 2001 to 3 percent in 2011.

Secretary Hazel made the announcement during VFHY’s fourth annual Virginia Healthy Youth Day celebration on the grounds of the Virginia State Capitol, where more than 450 area school children gathered for a celebration of healthy lifestyles.

Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell praised the milestone achievement, saying, “The Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth and Secretary Hazel should be commended for their excellent work in reducing youth smoking rates and improving public health. Instilling the values of a healthy lifestyle in the next generation is incredibly important and I applaud Secretary Hazel, the VFHY and all those involved in this significant effort.”

“The Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth has made remarkable achievements in its efforts to keep kids from smoking in the past 10 years,” Secretary Hazel said. “We have made great strides in lowering the rate of youth smokers and I look forward to continuing our work with VAFHY and building on our success.”

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