The Office of National Statistics data shows that the number of adult smoking( 18 years and over) dropped to 13.3% in 2021 down from 14.0% the previous year. This is the lowest level the country has reported since it began tracking the statistic on smokers.
While these numbers are promising, the number of those using vaping products is on the rise. Statistics show that the number of those 16 years old and older who used vaping products rose to 7.7% in 2021 up from 6.4 the previous year.
The first data on smoking in the country collected by the Office of the National Statistics was for 2011. At the time the office found that 20.2% of Britons were smokers. The latest statistics show a significant drop in the number of people who smoke cigarettes in the country.
According to James Tucker of the ONS, the data shows that the drop in the number of smokers can partly be attributed to the fact that some of the former smokers have now turned to e-cigarettes.
Reiterating the fact that this is the lowest portion of smokers in the country since the ONS began collecting smoking prevalence data in 2011, Tucker believes that vaping devices have had a positive impact on reducing the number of smokers in the country.
e-cigarettes have gained significant popularity in the country even among current smokers in the recent past. The data from ONS shows that the largest proportion of the population that uses e-cigarettes are current smokers. The data shows that current smokers represent 25.3% of those who also use vaping products in the country. Former smokers who currently only use vaping products represent only 15.0% of all e-cigarette users in the country while 1.5% of those who vape have never smoked.
The ONS notes that other than vaping products, many other factors have contributed to the drop in the number of current smokers in the country. They point out that increased public campaigns on the dangers of smoking have helped many people change their habits. In addition, the presence of smoke-free spaces such as offices and pubs has helped many resist the urge to smoke and officially give up on smoking.
The England government through the tobacco control plan wants to reduce the proportion of smokers in the country to below 12% by the end of the year. In the UK, Scotland was the country with the largest number of smokers with 14.8% of the population smoking cigarettes. The prevalence of smokers in Wales was 14.1% and in Northern Ireland 13.8%. in the same year, more men smoked than women. In the UK the number of men who were current smokers was 15.1% compared to only 11.5% of women who reported smoking.
When age was considered 25-34 years older represent 15.8% of all the smokers in the country. This age group had the most current smokers. the age group with the lowest number of smokers was those above 65 years at 8%. The ONS data also showed that people with at least a degree were less likely to smoke. Those without a college education were more likely to smoke representing 29.2% of all smokers in the country.
While many former smokers are ditching cigarettes for vaping, the government feels that this is the right direction. According to NHS vaping is not risk-free, but poses less risk when compared to cigarette smoking.
