World No Tobacco Day: Legal age to buy tobacco should be raised to 21
Lovexair, Nofumadores and XQNS call on the Government to prevent Spanish teenagers from accessing tobacco and nicotine
The age of initiation to tobacco use in Spain is 14,1 years according to the ESTUDES 2023 survey. This early initiation to smoking has not changed substantially in the last 20 years, so the country does not comply with the legislation that prevents the purchase of tobacco by minors, registering 21% of daily smokers in the age group from 14 to 18 years.
The asociación Unsmoked
rs, the citizen initiative Why Do We? (XQNS) and Lovexair Foundation On World Anti-Tobacco Day, they are calling on the Government to adopt measures that effectively prevent adolescents from becoming addicted to cigarettes. The three organizations demand that the legal age for purchasing tobacco and nicotine products be raised to 21 years., as a preliminary step to the gradual abolition of the sale of tobacco to the new generations and thus achieve a “Tobacco Free Generation"measure for which they are collecting signatures on the change.org platform.
Nine out of ten cigarette addicts will be addicted before they turn 21, according to WHO data. The president of Nofumadores stressed the importance of “preventing the tobacco industry from reaching teenagers, through social networks and legal and illegal cigarette sales networks”, since teenagers make up the bulk of replacement smokers, those that the industry needs to maintain its lucrative business at the expense of 60.000 deaths a year in Spain.
The lies and manipulations of “Big Tobacco”
“The basis of our business is high school students”, “young smokers are the only source we have to replace dying smokers” or “we protect young people's right to smoke”, These are phrases that belong to the tobacco industry and are part of the WHO video for World Anti-Tobacco Day..
While the tobacco industry tries to convince the population, through misinformation, that they are “low-risk products”, it hides from them that Between 60-90% of users continue to consume conventional tobacco and electronic cigarettes in a dual way, so addiction and health risk are not only reduced, but doubled.
"The tobacco industry has been bringing out new, "healthier" products (filter cigarettes, light or low-nicotine tobacco, Premier cigarettes, etc.) for decades, and yet people continue to die from tobacco-related diseases," the organizations point out.
Cotton candy flavored nicotine
On World Tobacco Day, Nofumadores strongly criticizes the vaping, electronic cigarette and heated tobacco industry. “They intend to appropriate the term harm reduction while advertising and selling disposable and flavored vapes to children and putting economic pressure on gas stations, bazaars and convenience stores, perfumeries and businesses of all kinds to place flavored vapes in prominent places.”
The decline in the number of smokers that has occurred in recent decades is threatened by the emergence of new tobacco and nicotine products, which represent a serious danger for adolescents. The WHO points out that the use of electronic cigarettes increases the possibility of being a smoker in adulthood by 300 percent.
More measures to end smoking: ENDGAME
On the occasion of World No Tobacco Day, Lovexair, Nofumadores and XQNS remind the Government of the urgent need to adopt drastic measures to put an end to the high percentage of Spanish minors who start smoking before reaching the age of majority.
The organisations are also calling for other deterrent measures such as:
- The regulation of new tobacco products should be brought into line with conventional tobacco, both in terms of sales and advertising, as well as consumption and access by minors;
- The reduction of points of sale with the withdrawal of thousands of vending machines and the prohibition of online sales;
- The extension of smoke-free outdoor community spaces, whether publicly or privately owned, such as restaurant terraces, stadiums and shows, in addition to the prohibition of the display of tobacco products at the point of sale.
All these measures would be included in a ENDGAME policy or end of smoking.
Public Health Physician Joseba Zabala, coordinator of the XQNS Citizen Initiative for the Advancement of the Tobacco Law in Spain, explains that “TOBACCO ENDGAME” is a concept that goes beyond tobacco control and aims to end the tobacco epidemic by strengthening tobacco control efforts. It is not about banning tobacco products but about denormalizing them from everyday life and making it difficult to buy them.
This means taking action against the tobacco industry in the manner outlined in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). Countries with an End Tobacco Plan aim to reduce smoking prevalence to 5% or less by a target date and then initiate a phase-out.
In addition to strengthening the aforementioned tobacco control measures, it is essential to establish family and school prevention policies to empower children and young people from the interference of the tobacco industry. This is the motto of this year's WHO World No Tobacco Day.
Nonsmokers.org, is a non-profit association, leader in Spain in the defense of passive smokers member of ENSP (European Network for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention) and collaborating partner of CNPT (National Committee for the Prevention of Smoking). Winner of the 2022 World No Tobacco Day award given by WHO.
XQNS CITIZEN INITIATIVE BECAUSE WE DO! It is a non-profit initiative promoted by the Association for the Prevention of Smoking in Aragon (APTA) and the Basque-Navarre Association for the Prevention of Smoking.
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