English smokers fall below 20 percent

The smoking prevalence in England has fallen below 20 percent for the first time in about 80 years, according to a report posted on the BMJ website, quoting research carried out at University College, London.

The latest figures come from a large national surveillance study that has been tracking smoking prevalence in England since 2006.

Each month, a representative sample of about 1,800 people aged 16 years or older is randomly selected to complete a computer-assisted survey with a trained interviewer.

In 2013, 22,167 adults were surveyed, and the prevalence of cigarette smoking was found to be 19.3 percent.

More detailed data are available at www.smokinginengland.info.