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National Statistics
Publication, Part of

Statistics on Smoking - England, 2008

Official statistics, National statistics
Publication Date:
Geographic Coverage:
United Kingdom
Geographical Granularity:
Country, Ambulance Trusts, Clinical Commissioning Groups, Strategic Health Authorities, Government Office Regions
Date Range:
01 Jan 2006 to 31 Dec 2007

Summary

This statistical report presents a range of information on smoking which are drawn together from a variety of sources. The report aims to present a broad picture of health issues relating to smoking in England and covers topics such as smoking habits, behaviours and attitudes among adults and school children, smoking-related ill health and mortality and smoking-related costs.

This report combines data from different sources presenting it in a user-friendly format. It contains data and information previously published by The NHS Information Centre, Department of Health, the Office for National Statistics and Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. The report also includes new analysis carried out by The NHS Information Centre.

Highlights

Among adults aged 16 and over, in England, in 2006:

  • results from the General Household Survey show, overall smoking prevalence has decreased. In 2006, 22 per cent of adults reported smoking, compared to 24 per cent in 2005 and 39 per cent in 1980
  • as with previous years, smoking was higher among men than women (23 per cent and 21 per cent respectively) although this gap is narrowing
  • those in the routine and manual groups reported the highest prevalence of smoking (29 per cent)
  • there has been a marked increase in the proportion of smokers who smoke mainly hand-rolled tobacco. In 1990, 18 per cent of men and two per cent of women who smoked said they smoked mainly hand-rolled cigarettes, but by 2006 this had risen to 34 per cent and 17 per cent respectively

For pupils aged 11 to 15 in England, in 2007:

  • two-thirds of pupils reported they had never smoked. The proportion who had never smoked rose from 47 per cent in 1982 to 67 per cent in 2007
  • six per cent of children reported that they were regular smokers (smoked at least once a week)
  • girls were more likely to have ever smoked than boys (36 per cent compared to 31 per cent) and to smoke regularly (eight per cent compare with five per cent)

Among adults in Great Britain in 2007:

  • two-thirds (67 per cent) of adults report that they do not allow smoking at all in their home, an increase from 61 per cent in 2006
  • four in five people agree with the smoking ban in public places

In England in 2006/07 among adults aged 35 and over:

  • around 445,100 hospital admissions are estimated to be attributable to smoking. This accounts for 5% of all hospital admissions among this age group. Around a quarter 26 per cent (107,600) of all admissions with a primary diagnosis of respiratory diseases, 16 per cent (139,600) of all admissions with a primary diagnosis of circulatory diseases and 13 per cent (163,200) of all admissions with a primary diagnosis of cancer are attributable to smoking

In England in 2007 among adults aged 35 and over:

  • around 82,900 deaths (18 per cent of all deaths of adults aged 35 and over) were estimated to be caused by smoking with a larger proportion of men (23 per cent) estimated to die from smoking-related diseases than women (14 per cent)

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Last edited: 30 March 2022 7:46 am