This fact puts Scotland that prohibited smoking in public places in March 2006, on an equal basis with such countries as Albania and Paraguay and this means that it has a less number of smokers than China, France, Finland, Greece and Spain. Nevertheless the statisticians declared that at present-day rates, the Government’s aim at lessening the percentage of smokers to 22% by the end of this year will still be missed.
The Scottish Household Survey found that 24.3% of adults stated that they smoked in 2009, if compared with 30.7% in 1999. The given data presented by the General Register Office for Scotland shows that about 227,107 of people stopped smoking over the decade.
“In case this average decrease continues, the 2010 figure is likely to be around 23.5%, above the 22% aim,” according to the survey.
Health campaigners and anti-smoking organizations approbated the reduction, and the fact that there were about 30,000 fewer smokers in 2009 than in 2008.
“The decline in smoking rates on an annualized basis proves that more and more people succeed to stop smoking and that the public health messages about the dangers caused by smoking are getting through,” Sheila Duffy, chief executive of ASH Scotland, declared.
The given figures showed that there is a link between deprivation, worklessness and smoking levels. Four in ten adults living in the poorest areas of Scotland currently smoke and those who regularly light up are adults unable to work due to short-term ill health, those who are jobless and people who have disabilities.
Men are more likely to smoke than women in every age group, as about 60 to 70 age group, men smoke 3 cigarettes per day more than women. The average smoker lights up between 10 and 20 times per day.
After Scotland implemented the smoking ban, similar legislation was introduces in Ireland and since then smoking was banned in all public places in England, Iceland, Wales and other European countries.
The given smoking ban may have encouraged some people to quit, but there was no change in the overall number of smokers since the introduction of the ban, according to a recently realized household survey.
However at present smokers are less likely to say that their health is good and 11% state their health is bad or very bad, according to the study.
“We are ready to do all we can in order to prevent children and young people starting to smoke, including measures indicated in the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services Act. I believe that realizing all these actions will lead us to more decreases in the number of Scots who smoke,” Shona Robison, Minister for Public Health concluded.