Blacks experience excessive mortality for many tobacco-related cancers. The death rates for black women are higher than for white women for cancers of the respiratory system, heart disease, and stroke. This ratio is not as high among white men and women. The death rate from smoking for white men is double that for white women. The death rates for white women are higher relative to those of black women.
Blacks tend to become ill from smoking at younger ages than do whites.
In 1988, blacks lost an estimated 268,437 years of potential life to age 65 due to smoking. Whites lost an estimated 913,943 years. In general, women in the lowest age and socioeconomic categories are most likely to smoke during pregnancy. Among all pregnant women over age 20, decreases in smoking prevalence between 1967-1980 varied considerably by race. Among pregnant women who smoke, blacks smoke fewer cigarettes per day than whites.