Amid frightening reports connected with the Zika virus, childhood obesity and prescription drug abuse, some encouraging news has emerged on the public health scene.
The smoking rate among U.S. adults posted the largest annual decline in more than 20 years and now stands at 15 percent, according to a survey by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Smoking — widely regarded as the leading cause of preventable illness — fell two percentage points last year, the largest drop since 1992-93.
From a broader perspective, smoking rates have been declining for decades at about 1 percent annually. About 50 years, ago when smoking was widely practiced, the rate of U.S. adults who smoked was about 42 percent.
The decline is attributed to a number of factors, including health warnings and anti-smoking campaigns, increasing tobacco taxes, and smoking bans.
Smoking has morphed from being regarded as cool and fashionable to foul, expensive and unhealthy. The CDC links smoking to more than 480,000 deaths each year.
In an effort to satisfy the craving for nicotine without the offending tar and smoke created by burning tobacco, a new product, the e-cigarette, is gaining popularity.
The ramifications of "vaping" e-cigarettes, which heat liquid nicotine into a vapor, remain largely unknown.
Public health officials acknowledge e-cigarettes are playing a role in helping people quit smoking tobacco. But the downside is the potential health hazards have not been widely studied and the devices are being marketed to teens.
Earlier this month, the federal Food and Drug Administration announced new regulations and its intention to study the devices and ingredients, which could lead to new findings and consumer protections.
Experts are reluctant to predict the future of vaping, citing the number of variables.
We don't disagree. But the emergence of public health information and data, along with restrictions and laws to protect non-smokers, has caused a steady decline in adult smoking.
We encourage a similar analysis of vaping's effect on health and hope the findings again will produce a sensible reaction among users.
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