DECLINE IN SMOKING STALLED AFTER PANDEMIC, STUDY REVEALS
A long-term decline in smoking has stalled since the Covid-19 pandemic, with smokers increasingly turning to roll-ups, researchers have found.
A study by University College London (UCL), funded by Cancer Research UK, found overall cigarette consumption fell by 22 per cent – from 13.6 cigarettes a day to 10.6 – between 2008 and October 2019.
However, the data from 57,778 adult smokers who took part in the monthly survey between January 2008 and September 2023, showed the decline paused between late 2019 and 2023.
Researchers suggested this could be attributed to more people working from home following the pandemic, leading to them taking more regular smoking breaks.
The study, published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research, found the average smoker had 14 cigarettes a day in 2008, falling to 11 by 2019 – a figure which has not changed.
Roll-ups now most popular cigarettes
But self-rolled cigarettes have overtaken factory cigarettes in popularity, with an average of 5.7 consumed daily by smokers, against 5.4 manufactured cigarettes.
On average, smokers are getting through 35 per cent more hand-rolled cigarettes and 47 per cent fewer manufactured cigarettes since 2008.
Researchers suggested that this could be down to the price of manufactured cigarettes, which has been driven up by steep tax rises.
Dr Sarah Jackson, lead author of the paper and principal research fellow at UCL’s Institute of Epidemiology and Health Care, said: “This 15-year study captures shifts in smoking behaviour, showing that while the average number of cigarettes smoked per day has fallen, this trend has stalled since 2019.
“People are increasingly opting to use cheaper hand-rolled tobacco over more expensive manufactured cigarettes, proving that consistency in taxation and regulation across all cigarette types is key.
“Some groups across England still smoke more heavily than others. It’s vital that smoking cessation services are made easily and equally available across the UK, so that those who want to quit smoking are given all the support they need to do so.”
Cancer Research UK called for Rishi Sunak’s legislation aiming to create a “smoke-free generation” to pass through Parliament “swiftly” in a bid to reduce cancer rates caused by smoking.
Government ‘must not let up’
The charity said smoking causes about 15 different types of cancer, and leads to the equivalent of about 150 cases of the disease every day.
In October, Mr Sunak unveiled plans to introduce legislation that would make it illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone born after Jan 1 2009.
Dr Ian Walker, the executive director of policy at Cancer Research UK, said the UCL study “makes it clear that the UK Government must not let up in its fight to reduce smoking”.
“All tobacco products are harmful, and more work needs to be done to end cancers caused by smoking for good,” he added.
Mr Sunak’s Tobacco and Vapes Bill will raise the legal age for buying tobacco – currently 18 – every year by one year so that people born in or after 2009 will never legally be able to buy cigarettes.
The Bill cleared its first Commons hurdle last month, with MPs voting 383 to 67 to give it a second reading.
2024-05-02T05:05:41Z dg43tfdfdgfd