Survey reveals 76% of Irish smokers want to quit

Smokers support tobacco control initiatives.

A survey undertaken by MRBI on behalf of the Office of Tobacco Control (OTC) has revealed that 76% of Irish smokers want to give up, with 64% having tried at some stage to give up. The research was presented today (Tuesday, 4 March 2003) by the MRBI's Damian Loscher at a seminar organised by the OTC entitled Smokers - Attitudes, Behaviour and Cessation. The seminar was opened by the Minister for Health and Children, Micheál Martin TD, and was held in the King's Inns, Dublin.

"The vast majority of Irish smokers want to give up smoking, with 76% of them expressing this view in this survey. The desire to quit applies across all age groups and is reflected in the fact that the majority of smokers have tried to give up (64%) and intend to try again (76%)," Damian Loscher explained.

"A common perception is that smokers only start to quit when they grow old. In reality, the journey from experimentation to frustration is a short one - 69% of smokers in the 18-24 year old age bracket have tried to give up and 79% want to give up".

Mr Loscher said that smokers' desire to give up is intense, and this partly explains why they support a range of different measures to control tobacco in Ireland:

• 46% support doubling of cigarette prices to discourage young people from smoking;
• 57% agree with the introduction of pictures of smoking related diseased organs on cigarette packs;
• 85% endorse the doubling of fines for retailers selling cigarettes to underage smokers; 79% support the introduction of licensing for retailers who sell cigarettes;
• Overwhelming support amongst smokers for smoking bans in a wide variety of settings from doctors'/dentists' waiting rooms (96%) to cinemas, theatres and concert halls (86%).
• Considerable support for curbing the marketing activities of tobacco companies, with 70% supporting a ban on product placement, 67% backing a ban on all forms of advertising/support and 62% endorsing a doubling of anti-smoking advertising spend.

Another speaker at the same seminar, Claire Conroy, IMS Health, further reinforced the fact that smokers want to quit when she highlighted research that showed that the value of the Irish market for nicotine replacement therapies grew by 20.5% in the period between December 2001 and December 2002.