MARQUETTE -- A recently released study links adults with mental illnesses to a higher likelihood of smoking.
The report from the Centers for Disease Control found adults with some form of mental illness have a smoking rate 70 percent higher than adults with no mental illness.
The data also revealed one in three adults with a mental illness smoke cigarettes, three out of ten cigarettes are smoked by adults with a mental illness, and that one in five adults have a mental illness.
"People with mental illnesses tend to look for coping skills that are immediate, and the gateway drug in this society is nicotine, so the first drug they're going to use which is affordable and legal is nicotine," said Dr. Mindy Miller, Marquette General Hospital.
Medical experts recommend helping family members suffering from a mental illness to stop smoking which would help improve both their mental and physical health.
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