Policy makers have been encouraged to tighten legislation for smokers, as there are new products on the market targeting young people, which could lead to addiction problems.
The draft Control of Tobacco and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill (the Tobacco Bill), which is currently before Parliament, seeks to strengthen public health protection measures and places South Africa on a path to a comprehensive implementation of the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
The Bill, if passed, will institute smoke-free indoor public and certain outdoor places, ban the sale of cigarettes through vending machines; introduce plain packaging with graphic health warnings/pictorials; ban display at point of sale, and regulate as well as control Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) and Non-Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENNDS).
According to the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS), 74% of adults smokers in South Africa started smoking as teenagers (by the time they were 19 years old), while 18% of adult smokers started before they were 15 years, and 43% by 16 years.
The survey is a global standard for systematically monitoring adult tobacco use (including smoking, vaping and e-cigarettes) and tracking key tobacco control indicators.
“We know that these products are not supposed to be accessible to persons younger than 18 years so how come the average age of smoking initiation in South Africa is 17.6 years? It is because a lot is happening in terms of some regulatory loopholes that need to be tightened so that young people can be protected.
“Many young people who start smoking do not understand the harms of these products and this is why we need to make sure that the law is strong and focused on protecting children.
“We know that many people who start on nicotine, who are drug users today, started with cigarettes so any regulatory gap is costly in all ramifications to the country,” South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) Specialist Scientist at the Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug Research Unit, Dr Catherine Egbe, said on Wednesday.
She said the many young people who start smoking do not understand the dangers of these products, which makes it more important for lawmakers to tighten legislation to protect young people.
Egbe was discussing the key finding of the GATS during the Department of Health’s Tobacco Control, which found that tobacco use in South Africa among persons that are 15 years and older is at a 29.4% prevalence rate; which means the smoking prevalence rate is 25.8% and the smokeless tobacco prevalence rate is 4.3%.
With the study showing that the prevalence of the e-cigarettes rate for people who have used it stands at 6.2% and for the current e-cigarettes use the figure stands at 2.2%, Egbe expressed concern that the spaces that offer e-cigarettes, as they are not regulated and they target young people.
“We need to be careful about these products because the target is to recruit young people to be nicotine addicts. Once young people are hooked on e-cigarettes they will progress to using tobacco.
“Traditional smoked products are mostly used by ages 45 – 64 years, while the emerging products are mostly used by young adults aged 15 – 24 years.
“In terms of waterpipe/hubbly bubbly smoking, the overall prevalence is 3.1% and for e-cigarettes, the prevalence rate is at 2.2%,” Egbe said.
The survey found that smokers, who made an attempt to quit within the last year, was at 40.5%; current smokers, who planned to or were thinking about quitting 65.7%; smokers advised by a healthcare provider is 42.9% and former daily smokers was at 10.6%.
The data collection took place from 17 May until 1 September 2021using face-to-face interviews.
