Mortality attributable to smoking in New Zealand

Relative risks for mortality due to various smoking related diseases were derived from a review of the literature on the epidemiology of smoking related illness. These were used, together with the New Zealand 1976 census data on smoking habits and the National Health Statistics mortality data, to derive the proportion of deaths which can be attributed to cigarette smoking. The results indicate that about 15 percent of deaths in New Zealand (3693 deaths annually) are attributable to smoking. This is comprised of 19 percent of all male deaths and 8 percent of all female deaths in 1976.