The international news agency Bloomberg presents another analysis that is not based only on the bans and restrictions on smoking as the cause of the decrease in the percentage of smokers. According to an article published on the website, cigarette smoking rates fell to the lowest level in the US in more than half a century, while at the same time consumers turned to alternative, smoke-free products.
According to Bloomberg data, only 11.5% of Americans regularly lit cigarettes last year, a figure even better than the 12% target set by the US government as part of the Healthy People program. This is according to the CDC report. Added to this is the evidence of the transition to smoking substitutes: approximately one in five adults reported using smoking substitutes in 2021, when the use of electronic cigarettes rose to 4.5%.
Various tobacco companies have also contributed to the change in tobacco consumption, expanding into smokeless and combustible nicotine alternatives with the decline in cigarette use. The number of smoking alternatives quadrupled in the year from June 2021 to 2022, according to an analysis by the Truth Initiative.
Adopting the approach of “reducing the harm” caused by smoking by switching to smoking substitutes that do not contain smoke, did not start with the Americans. It can be seen that a large number of countries that, in order to fight the smoking epidemic, have actively worked to make the use of alternatives accessible as a better option than continuing to smoke cigarettes for those who choose to continue consuming nicotine.
The pioneer among the countries is the United Kingdom, which has set itself a goal of reducing the number of smokers from 13% to 5% by the year 2030, as part of its vision to be a “smoke-free country”. The British Ministry of Health already published a dramatic announcement a few months ago that it will encourage one million smokers to switch cigarettes to smoking substitutes fully funded by the state. This, as part of a new and first program of its kind called “Swap for a break”, which is designed to help reduce the rate of cigarette smokers in the UK.
Only recently was a new study published by Brunel University in London, according to which “Switching half of UK smokers to vaping or heating tobacco would result in a 13% reduction in hospitalizations and translate into annual savings of £518 million. It is estimated that such a transition reduces by 70% the chance of contracting smoking-related diseases.”
The United Kingdom’s policy is also joined by Sweden, which is expected to become the first “smoke-free” country in the world this year with only 5.6% of smokers, 17 years ahead of the target set by the European Union.
Importantly, while the popularity of cigarettes has steadily declined since the 1960s, their use remains high in certain populations, including those with low incomes and populations in rural areas. These disparities should be addressed through strategies such as increasing product prices, running educational campaigns and regulating products, researchers said.