Nearly a quarter of people in Scotland smoke, with the majority of them wanting to quit, a survey by the Scottish Government has found.
The Scottish Health Survey 2014 showed that 22% of people in Scotland identified themselves as smokers in 2014, up from 21% in 2013. Of this group, 67% said that they wanted to quit smoking. The survey also showed that 21% of all smokers in Scotland having made no attempts to quit, 37% had made one or two and 43% had tried to quit at least three times.
The role of e-cigarettes in quitting smoking was highlighted in the survey’s results. It found that 64% of smokers attempting to stop had used a nicotine replacement device such as an e-cigarette in the previous three months. Half of all smokers reported having ever used one of the devices, while overall 5% of all those aged over 16 in Scotland responded that they currently used an e-cigarette.
Sheila Duffy, chief executive of health charity ASH Scotland said: ‘It’s encouraging that the majority of adults who smoke in Scotland want to quit and for some, e-cigarettes seem to be an acceptable alternative to smoking, or a way of quitting cigarettes. There are still many unknowns about e-cigarettes but what we do know suggests that lit, smoked tobacco is a lot more harmful to health. Even low levels of smoking are dangerous, and I’d encourage people using both cigarettes and e-cigarettes to drop tobacco as soon as possible.’
The survey also examined socioeconomic factors associated with successful quit attempts. It found that those aged 55 and over had increased odds of having successfully quit, compared with those aged 16 to 34, while smokers with a degree had a better chance of a successful quit attempt compared to those with no qualifications. Additionally, smokers in full time employment were more likely to report a successful quit attempt than those who are unemployed.
Ms Duffy added: ‘Scotland has a vision for putting cigarettes – the most lethal and addictive consumer product on open sale – out of sight, out of mind and out of fashion for the next generation.’