Fewer Americans smoke, more exercise regularly since 2008: study

Americans' exercise and smoking habits have improved while their eating habit has worsened slightly in the past eight years, found a new Gallup study.

The rate of Americans smoking has dipped to 18 percent from 21.1 percent in 2008, while that of Americans doing exercise regularly has edged up to 53.8 percent from 51.4 percent, Gallup found in a study based on interviews conducted daily from January 2008 through July 2016 as part of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index.

The percentage of American adults who smoke has declined nearly every year since 2001, according to Gallup.

Across age groups, the smoking rate has declined the most among young Americans -- those aged 18-29 -- during the past eight years.

Indeed, Gallup found in a poll released last year that among Americans aged 18-29, the smoking rate had declined from 34 percent in the period of 2001-2005 to 28 percent in the period of 2006-2010, and to 22 percent in the period of 2011-2015.

The survey found that though 53.8 percent of Americans exercise for 30 minutes or more at least three days a week, only 21 percent are meeting the physical activity guidelines for both muscle-strengthening and aerobic activity.

Meanwhile, 64.2 percent of Americans report eating healthy on any given day, down from 66.1 percent in 2008, Gallup said.

The percentage of Americans eating healthy peaked at 67.7 percent in 2010, but generally declined through 2013 and has remained steady since, Gallup found.

One possible explanation for the slight decline is that more Americans are aware of the nutritional content of their food and drinks, Gallup said.

The Obama administration has made some progress in shedding light on proper nutrition as the government has passed a regulation requiring large restaurant chains and vending machine operators to list calorie information on the food and drinks they sell. Endit