For years, men smoked at much higher rates than women. Over the last decades, the rate of smoking among men has fallen at a much faster rate than the rate of women who smoke. Canada has the 7th highest rate of women's smoking in the world, according to the World Health Organization. For men, Canada ranks 73rd. Cigarettes are the leading cause of preventable death 45,000 Canadians die from smoking each year - and the number is still growing.
Smoking is responsible for one in five deaths in Canada.
This is roughly five times the number of deaths caused by car accidents, suicides, drug abuse, murder and AIDS combined. The chance of dying from smoking for long-time smokers is 1 in 2. Deaths from smoking result in 15 years loss of expected life, on average. About half the deaths from smoking happen before the smoker reaches 70 years of age. These smokers lose an average of 22 years of life.