The number of teens in Israel who smoke on a daily basis has doubled in the last four years, a new study by the Smoke Free Israel initiative conducted ahead of World No Tobacco Day on May 31 reveals.
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According to the findings, the past four years have seen the percentage of teens ages 15-17 who smoke daily jump from 4.7% in 2018 to 9.7% in 2022. The number of 18 t0 19-year-olds who smoke daily has risen from 25% in 2019 to 35% in 2021 to 39% in 2022.
The study also shows that e-cigarettes are a gateway to smoking, with every second child aged 12-14 and every third teen aged 15-17 who smokes having started with e-cigarettes. The study concludes that the high school years are a critical time not only for initial experiments with smoking products, but also in terms of making the teens experimenting with smoking into lifelong smokers.
The percentage of teens experimenting with e-cigarettes has also risen, with 33% of respondents in 2022 saying they have tried e-cigarettes, compared to 24% in 2021. Young adults aged 18-30 were also experimenting more with e-cigarettes. In 2020, 3.8% of this age group had tried these products, but in 2020, that percentage was up to 9.4%.
The study, which polled 3,100 Jewish and Arab Israelis, pointed to three factors that contributed to the increase of e-cigarette consumption: the arrival of different brands of e-cigarettes in Israel in 2019-2020 and their increased availability at kiosks and shops; the arrival of disposable e-cigarettes in Israel when COVID lockdowns ended; and the end to COVID restrictions and the resumption of social gatherings.
While the sale of tobacco products to minors is illegal, the study found a 62% spike in the number of youth purchasing tobacco products for themselves, from 26% in 2019 to 43% in 2022.
The purchase of tobacco products via adults or friends who smoke was the second most common method for minors to secure tobacco products.
Two thirds of respondents age 15-17 reported that they had not encountered any barriers when attempting to purchase tobacco products. Nearly half – 43% -- said vendors had not asked for ID, and another 16% said that they had been asked how old they were, but sold the products anyway.
Most youths purchase tobacco products at kiosks and small shops, dedicated tobacconists, and convenience stores at gas stations.
Shira Kislev, CEO of Smoke Free Israel, said, "The government gets a failing grade in the battle against smoking and in protecting the next generation.
"Although the law bans the sale of tobacco products to teens, there is no oversight. Teens are buying cigarettes and other tobacco products at a higher rate than ever. These findings should keep the heads of the healthcare system and lawmakers awake at night," Kislev said.
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