New research out of Australia has found the introduction of plain, standardised packaging for cigarettes has helped curb the take-up of cigarettes amongst the nation’s youth.
The study published in October in the Journal of Tobacco Control found that almost a third of teens (31 per cent) who had previously smoked cigarettes reported the plain packs made them less likely to pick up the lethal habit again in future.
Similar research from the Cancer Institute New South Wales also found that 41 per cent of teen smokers either tried to quit or considered quitting due to plain packaging. Professor David Currow, chief executive the New South Wales Cancer Institute says that the country can only achieve a smoke-free future young people are prevented from taking it up in the first place.
Cancer Research UK’s tobacco policy manager George Butterworth adds that the new findings are ‘extremely encouraging’. He says, “The evidence shows standard packs are doing their job by turning young people off smoking, and even encouraging young smokers to quit.”
Australia introduced cigarette plain packaging in 2012 and we have followed suit here alongside countries like Malaysia and India by introducing similar measures to tackle cigarette related health concerns.
