New research shows e-cigarettes are not a gateway for young people to take up smoking

New research released today shows no evidence that e-cigarettes are a ‘gateway’ for young people to start smoking.

The annual survey, by tobacco control campaign group, ASH Wales Cymru, questioned more than 830, 11 to 18 year olds across Wales.

For the third year running the survey shows there is no link between youths vaping and starting smoking tobacco.

It has been a concern among health professionals since the rapid emergence of e-cigarettes that they would ‘renormalise’ smoking and act as a ‘gateway’ towards tobacco for young people.

Of the young people who reported using both e-cigarettes and tobacco cigarettes at some point, 90% had used tobacco first, suggesting the absence of any ‘gateway’ theory. The report confirms e-cigarette use is confined to current smokers or ex-smokers and they are rarely used among ‘never’ smokers.

It also showed more than 30% of the e-cigarette users had quit smoking altogether. Reasons for using e-cigarettes varied from taste, to friends using them, to wanting to know what they were like.

Young people from the poorest parts of Wales were 25% more likely to have used an e-cigarette compared to their counterparts in the least deprived areas of the country.

These statistics around use by young people match recent results around adult usage from the Welsh Health Survey 2015. This was the first time the Welsh Health Survey had looked at e-cigarette use. It revealed that 6% of over 16’s stated they currently use an e-cigarette – 140,000 of the Welsh population. Use among never smokers was negligible at 0.06%.

For the third year in a row our research confirms young people are not using e-cigarettes if they’ve never smoked before.

E-cigarettes can contain highly addictive nicotine and there is no need for young non-smokers to use the devices. We are pleased to see these latest results confirm that e-cigarettes are being used as a smoking cessation device, similar to nicotine patches or gum and at the moment are not acting as a gateway towards tobacco.  E-cigarette users are now reducing the harm to their bodies caused by poisonous and cancer-causing tobacco smoke.”

Suzanne Cass, Chief Executive of ASH Wales “There is a lot of confusion about the relationship between e-cigarettes and smoking in young people. Surveys from other countries do keep claiming there is a link despite youth smoking rates continuing to fall in the countries where these studies take place. This new data from Wales should reassure people that although young people are experimenting with e-cigarettes, we are not seeing regular use in never smokers. Meanwhile, youth smoking rates in Wales continue to decline, which is key to preventing cancer and other diseases that smoking causes.”
Professor Linda Bauld from the University of Stirling and UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies

“We are pleased that latest ASH Wales Cymru findings highlight encouraging trends to show that young people in Wales are not turning to e-cigarettes as a way to start smoking but rather as a way to reduce harm caused by intake of tobacco by cigarettes.”

Ruth Coombs, Head of British Heart Foundation (BHF) Cymru

Call on public to pledge to make more homes smokefree launches today

A new campaign to get smokers to take their habit outside and away from the home launches today across Wales.

The ‘Smokefree Homes’ campaign aims to raise awareness of the harms smoking inside the home causes to family members, children and pets.

Run by ASH Wales Cymru and supported by Community Housing Cymru Group, ‘Smokefree Homes’ will also provide one-to-one support and information for anyone wanting to make their home smokefree.

80% of cigarette smoke is invisible and can linger in the air, on furniture and on toys for 5 hours – even with windows and doors open. Children are more vulnerable to second-hand smoke because they have small airways and breathe faster, taking in more smoke-filled breaths.

To mark the beginning of this hard-hitting campaign, ASH Wales is asking people to pledge to make their homes smokefree, whether they smoke or not. One lucky entrant will be selected at random to win £100 in vouchers for their home.

Today also marks the launch of an online chat service on the Smokefree Homes website where anyone looking to stop smoking can talk to experts about finding the right way to quit for good.

Chief Executive of ASH Wales, Suzanne Cass, said,

“Making your home smokefree is a huge step forward in protecting everyone in your household, even pets, from poisonous, chemical-filled smoke. It’s a tragic fact that 40% of young people are regularly exposed to second-hand smoke in their family environment and that is why this campaign is here, to protect those young people from harm.”

“It’s not just the health aspect; smoking in the home is a huge fire risk with over 150 smoking-related fires in Welsh homes every year.”

Smoking rates in Wales fall for third year running

Historical article

This page reports figures published at the time. For the latest smoking rate, deaths, hospital admissions, inequalities and other Wales data, see Smoking statistics and facts in Wales.

A newly-released survey which examines the health of people in Wales shows a 1% decrease in smoking rates to 19% compared to last year.

The annual Welsh Health Survey for 2015 shows on average 19% of adults currently smoke, compared to 20% in 2014. Smoking rates were highest among 25 to 34 year olds at 27% and men were more likely to smoke (21%) than women (18%).

For the first time e-cigarette use was included in the survey, which showed 6% of respondents currently use an e-cigarette, equating to 140,000 of the Welsh population. This is in-line with recent findings from a UK-wide survey which said 2.8 million Britons (6%) currently vape.

However, the survey also showed smoking rates in the most deprived areas was significantly greater than in the more affluent.  A total of 29% of those classed as ‘most deprived’ smoke, compared to just 11% of those classed as ‘least deprived’.  The survey showed smoking rates in the most deprived areas had remained static whilst there was a significant 2% fall in the numbers of people smoking from the most affluent areas.

For example, smoking rates in Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire are as low as 16%, whereas in Blaenau Gwent 26% of residents smoke.

Suzanne Cass, Chief Executive of ASH Wales Cymru said,[/vc_column_text][mk_blockquote font_family=”none”]“It is great to see smoking rates gradually decreasing on average by 1% every year for the past 3 years after remaining stubbornly static from 2007 to 2012, decreasing by just 1% over the entire 6 years. No doubt this is partly due to the surge in e-cigarette use among those wanting to quit tobacco or reduce their harm.”

“It is clear from this survey, however, that much more progress is needed. The marked difference in smoking rates between the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ is a real cause for concern. It is imperative that these communities are engaged and fully supported every step of their journey to becoming smokefree. They need tailored advice and, crucially, specific support to suit their circumstances.”

  • The survey carried out annually by the Welsh Government looks at health status, illnesses, lifestyle, health service use and the health of children and analysed data from more than 13,000 respondents.

ASH Wales’ response to the removal of e-cigarettes from the Public Health Bill

ASH Wales are pleased that the Welsh Government have responded positively to the evidence put before them and have abandoned plans to ban e-cigarettes in public places.

The evidence shows that e-cigarettes are being used as a cessation tool by a significant number of ex-smokers. It is important that e-cigarettes are properly regulated and are used for cessation purposes only, but the distinction between tobacco and e-cigarettes needs to be made clear. It is universally agreed that vaping is far less harmful that cigarettes, in fact according to Public Health England they are 95% less harmful. There is also no evidence to suggest the passive vapour from e-cigs is harmful to the health of bystanders.

ASH Wales is looking forward to supporting the revised Public Health Bill which contains some progressive tobacco control measures including the introduction of a tobacco retail register.

ASH England advisory: Notification of changes to tobacco packaging laws commencing 20th May 2016

From 20th May 2016 laws surrounding tobacco packaging will change. From this date all tobacco products manufactured for sale in the UK must comply with the new laws. There is a one year transitional period for the sell-through of old stock and from May 2017 all tobacco products on sale in the UK must comply with these regulations.

Under the new packaging and labelling regulations cigarettes and tobacco will no longer be sold in bright, glitzy packs, but in drab green packages. [To see the effects of attractive packaging see here for a short video produced by Cancer Research UK.]

They will have large graphic images on the front and back of the packets to highlight the health effects of smoking and health warnings must appear at the top of all packs. The new packaging rules are contained in two sets of regulations:

  1. Regulations requiring cigarettes sold in the UK to be in standardised “plain” packaging [1]
  2. The revised Tobacco Products Directive [2]

Standardised “Plain” Packaging Standardised or “plain” packaging is tobacco packaging that has had all the attractive features removed. In March 2015 MPs voted overwhelmingly in favour of introducing regulations to standardise the appearance of all tobacco packaging in the UK [3].
This includes:

  • The material, size, shape and opening mechanism of the packaging;
  • The colour of packaging and cigarettes;
  • The font, colour, size, case and alignment of text.

Tobacco Products Directive

The Tobacco Products Directive applies to all tobacco products manufactured and sold within EU member states. With regards to tobacco packaging the revised TPD will:

  • Require combined picture and text health warnings to cover 65% of the front and back of cigarette and roll-your-own tobacco packages. [4]
  • Require health warnings to appear at the top of the packet (as per the illustration).
  • Prohibit certain promotional and misleading descriptors on packaging of tobacco products such as “lite”, “natural” and “organic”.
  • Require that cigarettes are sold in packs of a minimum of 20 sticks and Hand Rolling Tobacco in a minimum of 30 gram packets.

The Tobacco Products Directive will also:

  • Prohibit cigarettes and roll-your-own tobacco with characterising flavours, for example, fruits, chocolate. Menthol tobacco will be prohibited from 20th May 2020.
  • Introduce EU-wide tracking and tracing to combat illicit trade of tobacco products. This will apply from 20th May 2019 for cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco and 20th May 2024 for all other tobacco products.
  • Electronic cigarettes – the TPD also includes a number of regulations regarding electronic cigarettes. For more information see the ASH briefing: The impact of the EU Tobacco Products Directive on e-cigarette regulation in the UK

[1] The Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations, 2015

[2] Revision of the Tobacco Products Directive, 2014

[3] Hansard. 11 Mar 2015: Column 379

[4] See here for the full picture library of combined health warnings. The Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016, consultation draft[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][/vc_tta_accordion][/vc_column][/vc_row]

ASH Wales Cymru’s response to the fall of the Public Health (Wales) Bill

ASH Wales Cymru is disappointed after the Public Health Bill fell at the last hurdle meaning robust tobacco control measures contained in the proposed legislation maybe lost.

One of the most powerful control measures outlined in the Bill was the creation of a national register of retailers of tobacco products. This would have made it easier for retailers to be identified and monitored – helping to tackle the problem of illegal sales of tobacco to underage young people in Wales.

The Bill would have also restricted smoking in public playgrounds, school grounds and hospital grounds – a move which ASH Wales has long campaigned for.  As of last week every local authority in Wales signed up to our voluntary smokefree playgrounds initiative, which demonstrates the support this new law would have had.

Suzanne Cass, Chief Executive of ASH Wales Cymru said: “We know that smoking is an addiction of childhood, a classroom full of children take up smoking every day in Wales. It is essential that any tobacco control measures tackle the issue of young people taking up smoking. The retail register would have been a fantastic opportunity to give enforcement agencies a clear idea of where tobacco is being sold legally and illegally. As we know illegal tobacco is a huge problem across Wales, especially as it makes tobacco more accessible to young people with its cheap prices and lack of age restrictions.”

With regards to e-cigarettes, this was not a tobacco-control measure. Suzanne Cass added: “We didn’t want would-be quitters to be deterred from using e-cigarettes because of restrictions created by the Bill. Due to the way the politics has played out we have now lost significant tobacco control measures that would have gone a long way to helping to tackle underage sales and illegal products.”

“E-cigarettes are still relatively new technology and must be monitored. We will continue to review the evidence on e-cigarettes and their effect on public health.

Contact:

Emily Cole – 029 2049 0621 – emily@ashwales.org.uk[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]