Increasing Concern of Smoking in Switzerland

According to a recent report from Presseportal, Switzerland has been struggling with a high smoking rate, with approximately one-fourth of the total population being smokers. Despite several public health policies aimed at reducing tobacco consumption being hindered by industry lobbying, the Swiss Association for Smoking Prevention has discovered that both tobacco addiction and its associated healthcare costs are still on the rise. Additionally, the number of e-cigarettes and nicotine products has also seen an increase.

According to a health survey conducted in Switzerland, it has been found that in the year 2022, 24% of the Swiss population above the age of 15 are smokers. This percentage rises even further to 26% when considering the age group of 15-24 years. In contrast, France has implemented a series of measures in the past five years to reduce the number of smokers, successfully reducing the proportion of 17-year-old smokers from 25% in 2017 to 16% in 2022.

Another health survey reveals that only 6% of males aged 15-24 use e-cigarettes, while 11% use oral nicotine products.

In the past couple of years, there has been a significant increase in the consumption of disposable e-cigarettes. Additionally, according to a comprehensive survey report by the Swiss Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC), teenagers as young as 15 years old have started to extensively use e-cigarettes, as well as other tobacco and nicotine products.

According to the survey data from HBSC Switzerland in 2022, 25% of 15-year-old adolescents have used e-cigarettes in the past 30 days. Additionally, 16% of individuals have smoked traditional cigarettes, while 12% have used both e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes simultaneously. Furthermore, 9% of people have consumed oral tobacco products during this period.

This result has prompted the Swiss Tobacco Control Association to call for the inclusion of e-cigarette and smokeless tobacco product usage in the assessment of smoking prevalence. The association argues that smoking not only leads to higher healthcare costs for smokers but is also the largest preventable risk factor for many non-communicable diseases.

A recent study has revealed that smoking behavior during adolescence significantly influences smoking behavior in adulthood. In light of this finding, the association recommends implementing new public health policies and increasing public awareness on a wide scale regarding this issue.