Aotearoa New Zealand's Smoking Rates Plateau, Whilst Māori Smoking Rates Continue To Decline

Results from the annual Aotearoa New Zealand Health Survey show daily smoking rates have plateaued at just under 7%. Although daily smoking for Māori fell from 17.1% to 14.7%.

With only a year to go until the Smokefree goal of 5% the overall daily smoking rates have not changed since the 2022/23 survey, remaining at 6.9% in 2024 compared to 6.8%m the previous year.

ASH Director Ben Youdan says; “The last few years have seen record drops in smoking rates, putting Aotearoa New Zealand on a trajectory towards the smokefree goal. It is disappointing to see this slow down, although there is still some good news as the survey shows record low rates of smoking for Māori, and a drop in youth daily vaping from 15.4% to 10.5%”

Māori are continuing to stop smoking at a rapid rate, down to 14.7% half the daily smoking rate of 30% just 5 years ago. This is also consistent with recent 2023 census data that showed a smoking rate of 14.7% for Māori in 2023, compared to 28% in 2018.

ASH board member Fay Selby-Law says, “The dramatic decline in Māori smoking, in particular wāhine, has been at an almost unprecedented rate compared to any other population around the world. It is extremely encouraging to see this massive movement away from smoking, and we must do everything we can to sustain and increase the momentum so we can celebrate what could potentially be the last generation of wāhine to carry the burden of smoked tobacco.”

Mr Youdan says, “Vaping rates have risen as smoking has declined, and there is no doubt a switch to vapes is having a major impact on reducing smoking and related harms. Aotearoa New Zealand has struggled with the balance between helping adults to stop smoking and protecting young never smokers from vaping and it is encouraging to see the survey report an almost 25% drop in monthly youth vaping from 19.9% last year to 15% in the 2024 survey”.

Mr Youdan says, “Smoking and vaping have been highly contentious issues this year with the repeal of Aotearoa New Zealand’s smokefree laws that would have come into force this year. Despite the challenges, the health survey results should be a moment to step back and celebrate the good news. Especially the unprecedented rates of decline for Māori. We still have among the lowest population smoking rates in the world, and with only a year until our goal it is more urgent than ever for the Government to step up and present how they intend to get there for the health of the remaining 300,000 adults who still smoke daily”.

The full 2023/24 NZ Health Survey results may be found here: https://minhealthnz.shinyapps.io/nz-health-survey-2023-24-annual-data-explorer/

Smoking facts:

Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in Aotearoa New Zealand, causing more than 4,500 deaths every year – that’s 12 lives lost every day

People smoke cigarettes for the nicotine but die from the smoke from burning tobacco

Smoking is the leading cause of preventable health inequities being responsible for up to two years of the life expectancy gap experienced by Māori

6.9% of adults smoke cigarettes daily, but this rises to one in five (14.7%) among Māori.

Vaping facts:

An estimated 480,000 people vape daily

Vaping delivers a vapour composed mostly of propylene glycol (also used in asthma inhalers) and flavouring agents. Most contain nicotine

According to the Royal College of Physicians, current evidence supports the estimate that vaping is unlikely to exceed 5% of the harms of smoking

Vaping is a harm reduction tool for those who are smoking. It is helping thousands of adults to stop smoking

Vaping is not for children or never smokers.

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