Cigarettes are a gateway drug.
For 5th, 8th, and 11th grade students, those who report past month cigarette use, as compared to those who do not, are significantly more likely to be past month users of alcohol, marijuana, and other illegal drugs. On the encouraging side, easy availability of all drugs to 5th graders has declined slightly since 1997. When it comes to 8th and 11th graders, the majority of students know where to get cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana. There are small decreases in getting cigarettes for 8th graders but no change for 11th graders. Getting cigarettes from vending machines declined for the second year in a row for each of 5th, 8th, and 11th graders.