Americans favor raising the legal smoking age to 21

An overwhelming majority of Americans favored raising the legal age for smoking to 21, a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revealed.

Of the 4,219 American adults who joined in the survey, 50 percent strongly favored in increasing the minimum age for tobacco use from 18 to 21, while 25 percent revealed that they "somewhat favor" the need to increase the age. Only 11 percent said they would "strongly oppose" the measure, while 14 percent would "somewhat oppose" it.

The minimum legal age for tobacco use is currently 18 in most states. Four states -- Alaska, Alabama, New Jersey and Utah - implemented 19 years as the minimum legal age, while a number of municipalities and cities throughout the country implement 21 is the minimum legal age.

Hawaii is the sole state to legalize smoking at the age of 21. That includes electronic smoking. Alabama, Alaska, New Jersey and Utah already raised their minimum legal age for smoking from 18 to 19.

California state Senate already passed the bill that raised the legal age for smoking from 18 to 21 and should be lined up in the Assembly for legislation.

"Raising the minimum age of sale to 21 could benefit the health of Americans in several ways," Brian King, the research's co-author, said.

"It could delay the age of first experimenting with tobacco, reducing the likelihood of transitioning to regular use and increasing the likelihood that those who do become regular users can quit," King, who serves as acting deputy director for CDC's Office on Smoking and Health, continued.

The research also explicated that increasing the age-of-sale restrictions could curb individual tobacco use and dependency, particularly among the youth.

According to the Institute of Medicine, raising the minimum age for tobacco sale products to 21 throughout the country could mean a 12 percent drop in cigarette smoking by 2100. That would mean saving 250,000 lives from premature deaths among individuals born from 2000 until 2019.

The research was published at the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.