Study Says Fewer Middle And High School Students Smoking

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- State Health Department officials say fewer Oklahoma youngsters are smoking than five years ago.  The 2007 Oklahoma Youth Tobacco Survey compared this year's middle and high school students with those in 2002 and found a significant decline in the number who smoke.

The survey says an estimated 27,000 fewer Oklahoma middle and high school students smoke or occasionally try cigarettes now than compared to 2002.

The decline is credited to everything from the rising cost for a pack of cigarettes to unsightly appearances tied to smoking.