Smoking in Italy causes more deaths than drugs, alcohol, homicide and accidents combined

The fight against cigarette smoking has brought considerable results, but it is still not enough. In Italy, the majority of adults aged between 18 and 69 do not smoke (59%) or have stopped smoking (17%), but one Italian in four is still a smoker (24%). And this despite the fact that smoking still represents the greatest threat to human health, directly causing 93,000 more deaths than alcohol, drugs, road accidents, AIDS, homicide and suicide combined.

According to the Italian Society of Environmental Medicine (Sima) on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day, "in Italy, smoking-related deaths account for over 93,000 every year, 20.6% of all deaths among men and 7.9% of all deaths among women". "The social and health cost to the community determined by smoking is over EUR 26 billion every year in Italy. - says Sima president, Alessandro Miani - The real current emergency, as certified by the surveys presented today by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità, is represented by new generation cigarettes, such as electronic or heated tobacco cigarettes, which are the gateway that introduces young people to smoking". The latest official figures show an abnormal growth in the number of smokers in Italy who resort to electronic devices, particularly among young people. "As Sima, we are calling for the strengthening and extension of measures to combat smoking, both by clamping down on direct and indirect advertising of smoking through social networks, which affects the very youngest, and by means of information campaigns aimed at minors in particular about the health risks associated with new-generation cigarettes," Miani concludes.

The picture on smoking emerges from two different surveys of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (Iss) released on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day on 31 May. 24% of Italians today are still smokers, and this percentage is growing among young people: 30.2% use at least one product between traditional cigarettes, heated tobacco or electronic cigarettes, and in this age group poly-consumption, i.e. the simultaneous use of different products, doubles to 62.4%, compared to a previous 38.7%. Research also shows a sharp decline in the number of smoke-free centres. "Over the last 15 years, the percentage of smokers has decreased, but too slowly. They were 30% in 2008, now they stand at 24% - points out the president of the Iss Rocco Bellantone -. This process must be accelerated by focusing on prevention, which must start from schools. Schools are in fact one of the main places in which to build a social network among children and young people that aims to promote healthy lifestyles, such as the habit of not smoking".

The main concern is therefore consumption among young people, as revealed by an Iss survey among students in the year 2023-2024 on a sample of 6012 young people. About one in three students between 14 and 17 years old (30.2%) has used a tobacco or nicotine product in the last 30 days, including traditional cigarettes, electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco. Among girls, consumption is slightly higher. Polyconsumption, i.e. the simultaneous use of these products, almost doubles in this age group to 62.4% from a previous 38.7%. The age of first contact with nicotine is between 13 and 14 years. Moreover, there do not appear to be any strict age controls at the time of purchase, so much so that most of the young people interviewed stated that they personally bought the products at the bar or tobacconist. In about one in three cases, the parents are aware that the youngsters use a tobacco or nicotine product and seem to tolerate the use of the new products more than the traditional cigarette. But the risks are not to be underestimated. "We must not forget that nicotine is an addictive substance, and there is evidence of negative health effects from the use of this type of device as well," warns Simona Pichini who heads the Iss National Addiction and Doping Centre.

According to the Ministry of Health, tobacco consumption is the main preventable cause of cancer, accounting for 27% of all cancers attributable to smoking, still the risk factor with the greatest impact on mortality from oncological causes, despite the fact that the trend of smokers is declining, according to recent Aiom Foundation studies. Among tobacco-related cancers, however, we are beginning to see some signs of surrender, albeit tentative. Oncological surgeries on the larynx and bladder have fallen by 2.3% in 2 years and 5.5% in 5 years respectively. Other types of smoking-related oncological diseases remain on the rise: lung cancer (+11.9% compared to 2017), oesophagus (+11.9%), oral cavity (+1.3%), pancreas (+9.3%) and kidney (+12.4%). The data was also collected and analysed on World No Tobacco Day (31 May 2024) by Micuro, the digital platform to find the best healthcare facility in Italy based on transparent and impartial evaluations