Tobacco use in top-grossing movies jumped 80% from 2015-2016, according to a new study from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CNN reports:
The new report crunched the numbers from 2010 to 2016. The use of cigarettes, cigars, pipes, hookahs, smokeless tobacco and e-cigarettes was recorded in each of the top 10 highest-grossing movies at the US box office for each week of each year.
There was a steady decline in the amount of tobacco use shown in movies from 2005 to 2010. But in the next six years, the incidence fluctuated. It reached a peak in 2016, with 3,145 tobacco incidents in 143 movies.
Public health advocates are worried that this may influence tobacco use in young people. The lead author of the report Michael Tynan told CNN, "We've known for a while that the more you see smoking on screen, the more likely you are to see youth smoking cigarettes in real life. There’s a causal relationship between the two.”