Commercial Tobacco Use Within American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) Populations

(AI/AN) have a higher risk of tobacco-related disease and death due to higher rates of cigarette smoking and other commercial tobacco use. Read more about smoking and tobacco use from CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health.

• Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among AI/AN.
• Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths among AI/AN.
• Diabetes is the fourth leading cause of death among AI/AN. The risk of developing diabetes is 30%–40% higher for smokers than nonsmokers.

Networking2Save: CDC’s National Network Approach to Preventing and Controlling Tobacco-related Cancers in Special Populations supports a consortium of national organizations to prevent commercial tobacco use and cancer in populations experiencing tobacco- and cancer-related health disparities.

Cigarette smoking is more common among AI/AN than almost any other racial/ethnic group in the United States.

• More than 1 in 5 (22.6%) AI/AN adults smokes cigarettes
• Smoking increases the chances of losing members from your tribal community to smoking-related illnesses
• It increases the chances of losing elders to smoking-related diseases or exposure to secondhand smoke before they can pass down tribal customs and traditions