India has second most number of smokers worldwide
India has the second most number of tobacco smokers in the world, says a new study published in BMJ Global Health.
The number of male smokers increased by 36% to 108 million between 1998 and 2015. Cigarettes are also replacing the traditional Indian cigarette bidi, mainly due to economic growth.
That finding led study author Dr. Prabhat Jha to urge the Indian government to increase tobacco taxes. Previous research by Dr. Jha, director of the Centre for Global Health Research of St. Michael’s Hospital, has shown that raising the tax on tobacco is the single most effective intervention to lower smoking rates and to deter future smokers.
The study found the number of men smoking any type of tobacco at ages 15-69 years rose by about 29 million, or 36 per cent, from 79 million in 1998 to 108 million in 2015, representing an average annual increase of about 1.7 million male smokers.
The overall age adjusted smoking prevalence at ages 15-69 years declined modestly from 27 per cent in 1998 to 24 per cent in 2010 but total numbers rose due to population growth.
Cigarettes are steadily displacing traditional bidis. By 2015 there were roughly equal numbers of men ages 15-69 years smoking cigarettes or bidis: approximately 61 million Indian adult men smoked cigarettes (40 million exclusively) and 69 million smoked bidis (48 million exclusively).
Smoking cessation is uncommon in India. In 2015, at ages 45-59 years, there are roughly four current smokers for every quitter. By contrast, in North America, where smoking cessation is now common, there are more quitters than current smokers at these ages.
