1 in 5 Australian Smokers Unwilling to Quit

Cigarette stubs are pictured in an ashtray in Frankfurt, Germany, on Dec. 13, 2006. (Ralph Orlowski/Getty Images)

A significant number of smokers wish to continue the habit in the next one to two years, raising concerns among experts who argue that unless this changes, societies are unlikely to successfully eliminate smoking.

One fifth of Australian smokers indicated intention to continue smoking in the next one to two years despite ongoing public education efforts and decreased social acceptance.

Almost 60 percent wanted to quit altogether, while 12 percent prefer switching to vaping.

Professor Ron Borland from the Melbourne Centre for Behaviour Change expressed concern for Australia and smokers more broadly.

“It’s clear that there are still people who aren’t actively trying to quit and don’t necessarily intend to in the next one to two years,” he said.

“These results pose a challenge for tobacco control efforts, especially as we also know that most of those who would want to quit, have failed multiple times, and many are unlikely to succeed even with current approved help.”

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He noted only 47 percent of smokers in England expressed a desire to quit all nicotine, and 19 percent preferred vapes.

He added vaping was promoted as an alternative for smokers in England, and this raised questions about the effectiveness of current approaches to quitting.

“New approaches may be needed to try to steer people away from smoking because there is an increase in alternative products in many parts of the world, giving rise to more choice,” he said.

About 8,642 smokers from the United States, Canada, England, and Australia who smoked at least weekly took part in the 2020 International Tobacco Control Four Country Smoking and Vaping Survey.

They were asked if, over the next one to two years, they preferred to keep smoking, quit smoking without an alternative nicotine product, or quit with an alternative nicotine product.

Surge in Vaping Among Students

Meanwhile, a recent survey among Australian secondary students confirmed a spike in the number of young people who are vaping.

Vaping among teens has quadrupled in the past five years, according to the Cancer Council Victoria’s Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer.

Head of the Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer Professor Sarah Durkin explained the significant increase in vaping comes with a rise in the likelihood of smoking across all age groups, growing from 11.1 percent in 2017 to 15.3 percent in 2022/23.

“Studies that track young people over time find that those who vape are around three times as likely to take-up smoking later,” she said.

“So, while tobacco control over decades has driven down adolescents ever smoking to 13.5 percent in this latest survey, it would be unwise to ignore the significant increase in the proportion of 12- to 17-year-olds who are susceptible to smoking.”

Vapers More Likely to Smoke

Cancer Council Australia CEO Tanya Buchanan mentioned young people see vaping as a distinct behaviour from smoking and may not realise that they are three times more likely to start smoking if they vape.

“However, there’s a harmful and powerful industry intent on luring them into a lifetime of nicotine addiction,” she said.

“Thankfully, the federal government, in combination with governments in all states and territories, have committed to strengthening and enforcing the prescription pathway to restrict access to vapes, which will protect children, young people and people who don’t smoke from the harms of e-cigarettes.”

The importation of disposable vapes was banned in Australia on Jan 1. 2024.

Doctors will still be able to prescribe e-cigarettes for those seeking help to quit smoking as part of the new measures.

Additional measures will be introduced later in the year to enhance enforcement across the supply chain and limit access to e-cigarettes unless obtained through a prescription.

“These reforms will support the Australian Border Force, the Therapeutic Goods Administration, police, and other relevant agencies to work together to stop these products coming into the country and being easily accessible to children. They'll also help make vapes far less appealing to young people,” Professor Buchanan said.

“Cancer Council encourages all members of Parliament to support the upcoming evidence-based reforms to put the health of our communities first.”