Smoking rate among Chinese middle school students drops: survey

HANGZHOU, May 31 (Xinhua) -- The results of a national survey released on Friday show the smoking rate among Chinese middle school students was 4.2 percent in 2023, a decrease of 0.5 percentage points from 2021.

The rate of students who reported that they tried smoking in 2023 was 13.7 percent, a drop of 3 percentage points from 2021, the survey has also revealed.

Its results were made public at an event organized by the National Health Commission (NHC) to mark the 37th World No Tobacco Day on Friday. The survey polled over 250,000 middle school students from 31 provincial-level regions in China and had a response rate of over 95 percent.

The rate of electronic cigarette use among the country's middle school students was 2.4 percent in 2023, a decrease of 1.2 percentage points from two years ago, indicating a reduction of over 30 percent, according to the survey.

It has also revealed that the presence of smoking in schools has declined, while there has been no significant change within families. Promoting awareness of the harm caused by addiction to cigarettes and e-cigarettes remains necessary, it said.

The survey was conducted between September 2023 and January 2024. The NHC entrusted the task to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which then guided the survey work and undertook data collection and analysis.

Experts have warned that teenagers are particularly susceptible to the long-term effects of nicotine. Exposure during adolescence can negatively impact health, leading to problems such as memory and attention span issues, increased impulsivity, and heightened anxiety.

China has been taking a series of measures to strengthen its tobacco control and create a smoke-free environment. Related actions have been listed as major tasks in the Healthy China initiative, and efforts have been made to establish smoke-free home and school environments. Tobacco use among young people has been monitored regularly, and the country has cracked down on the illegal sale of tobacco to minors.