Analysis of Smoking Practices in Australia: A Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of smoking practices in Australia, examining the factors that influence smoking uptake and patterns within the population. It explores the health impacts of smoking on physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being, highlighting the disparities across different demographic groups, including indigenous Australians and those with mental health issues. The report investigates the level of awareness regarding smoking prevention and the effectiveness of government strategies, such as taxation, mass media campaigns, and legislative measures. It also discusses the limitations of existing research and suggests areas for future improvements, including addressing cultural behaviors, improving access to cessation support, and strengthening research on interventions for disadvantaged populations. The study utilizes both primary and secondary data, drawing from surveys, peer-reviewed journals, and government sources to provide a detailed overview of the issue, including an analysis of the smoking rates among various age groups and genders, and the impact of smoking on the Wellness Wheel, which encompasses various aspects of an individual's life.

Assignment on the Reasons
behind Prevalent Smoking
Practices in Australia

Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Aim of the Investigation.........................................................................................................4
Objectives of the Study..........................................................................................................4
Method of Inquiry......................................................................................................................5
Discussion and Conclusion......................................................................................................10
References................................................................................................................................14

Introduction
The biggest factor causing death and decline in health in the Australian populace was credited
to tobacco smoking practices as of 2011, responsible for causing injuries and diseases to 9%
of total populace increasing their risks to cardiovascular diseases, respiratory and related
health issues affecting the physical, emotional, social and mental well-being of individuals
associated with present tobacco usage, past usage and to individuals with exposure to passive
smoking (USHHS 2014). Estimated reports suggested that tobacco smoking resulted in lung
cancer to 80% and was the root-causal factor of 75% of COPD cases, claiming over 15,000 of
Australians annually. Smoking also amounted to an economic expenditure of $31.5 billion in
2005 which raised the strategic preventable measures in Australia resulting in drastic
reductions in smoking rates in the present time (IGCD 2013). Strategies like advertisement
bans, indoor smoking bans, outdoor smoking bans, bans in plain packaging, increment in
prices, restricted sales to the minors, educational awareness generation and media based
campaigns on smoking and its detrimental efficacies have all worked towards reducing the
smoking rates in Australia (MCDS 2011). The National-Drug-Strategy-Household-Survey of
2010, recognised that there are lesser people taking up smoking aged 14 years or above in
present times as compared to that before, with 57.8% of non-smokers now in comparison to
the 49% of 1991 (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2010). However, the smoking
rats of populace suggests a group of populace to be in high prevalent range of smoking as the
others, with 5 times more the rate (Stafford, 2012). These high smoking zone of populace
consists mostly of mentally-ill people, people with high alcohol and drug dependency,
prisoners and younger prison populaces (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2009).
There is a 17% health-gap between the indigenous Australian and the non-indigenous people
owing to smoking, with wide spread poverty, diseases, death, financial crisis, lack of stable
shelter, housing and stress (Kim, and Tsoh, 2016).

Table: Smoking rate amongst diverse groups in Australian populace
(Source: Www1.health.gov.au, 2019)
Aim of the Investigation
The present study focuses on the diverse health impacts affecting the Australian
demographics due to smoking practices. The study aims “to understand the factors which
influences smoking, the level of awareness generation and how the 4-components of human
health gets affected by smoking practices in the Australian population.”
For investigating upon the same, the study focused in primary and secondary data collection
means through quantitative data collection means in the form of surveys considering a sample
population of 22 respondents irrespective of their age, occupation and genders. The study
focused on secondary sources of peer-reviewed journals, literary works and articles published
in international forums and also relied on government sites for data collection. The significant
impacts of smoking, the demographics affected and the benefits of social and community
based health-care measures have also been elicited.

Objectives of the Study
On the basis of the aforementioned aim the investigation has been carried out relied on the
three objectives as detailed below, to help direct the investigation in the right track and for
efficient data analysis and interpretation.
1. To determine the influential factors behind smoking.
2. To elucidate the level of awareness present in Australia and their effectiveness in
prevention of smoking
3. To determine the impact of smoking on the four components of human health –
mental, physical, social and physical.
Thus the investigation is based upon the following Research Questions:
1. What influences a person to start smoking?
2. Is there enough awareness to prevent people from smoking in Australia?
3. How does smoking affect the persons 4 components of health?
Method of Inquiry
The present study has been focused upon two methods of data collection, namely the primary
and the secondary method of data collection. The primary data collection procedure considers
22 Australian respondents irrespective of their age, gender, occupation or lifestyles. The
secondary data is obtained in the study from a collection of government sites, peer-reviewed
journal articles, and internationally acclaimed literary sources containing relevant data of
recent years ranging from 2009 to 2019.
Determining the influential factors behind smoking
Diverse population group have different afflictions to smoking as controlled by several
factors like psychological, economic, social and cultural factors, as discussed below (Figure
1):
Factors enabling smoking
There are several factors which influence smoking uptake and smoking patterns amongst the
Australian populace like (Cougle, et al., 2010).
 Unemployment, low income and poor housing facility
 Childhood nicotine exposure

 Economic stress
 Depression and anxiety
 Parental exposure and peer pressure
 Intensive/targeted tobacco marketing
 Low indoor working hours
Barriers faced in quitting tobacco
People are more adept in taking up tobacco than in refraining from it. This is further fuelled
by certain barriers which prevent the quitting of tobacco usage as discussed below (Rayson,
2011):
 High nicotine dependency
 Lower awareness generation
 Lack of knowledge and misconceptions
 Lack of knowledge on cessation services available
 NRT therapy knowledge
 Economic stress
 Lack of family and peer support
 Low confidence
 Boredom
 Equalising smoking as a “stress-bursting hobby”

Figure 1: Smoking enablers and quitting barriers in the disadvantaged populace
(Source: Www1.health.gov.au, 2019)
Elucidation on the level of awareness present in Australia and their
effectiveness in Smoking prevention
The Australian Government aims to reduce the disparity amongst the population groups
prone to smoking as is demonstrated in the National-Tobacco-Strategy (2012-18), which
focuses on the health and social inequalities of the high-prevalent zone. This has been one of
the targets amidst the 9 prior action arenas in order to reduce economic and health disparities
in the population (Siahpush, et al., 2010).
The working procedures
Government strategies impacting the entire population have shown a positive impact in
reducing smoking tendencies amongst diverse socio-economic groups, through tax increment,
mass media awareness and legislative measures (Durkin, et al., 2011).

 Tax increment on tobacco prices is a means of population intervention policy helped
to reduce health-inequalities in smoking. This has reduced tobacco consumption
(Chaloupka, et al., 2011).
 Anti-smoking campaign promoted through mass-media has increased help-seeking
behaviour via Quitline calls, increased intentions of quitting, ceased smoking rates.
 Legislation promoting smoke-free practices has also increased quit tendencies and
attempts reducing consumption, in workplaces, and public places, discouraging
smoking amongst low SES and high SES group individuals.
 Strategies adopted across populations have reduced young-adolescents from smoking
amongst all groups particularly the low socio-economic category.
Promises
All these are playing a positive role in encouraging development of cessation services, anti-
smoking therapies and treatments supporting the cultural and social settings on smokers
amongst all groups.
Figure 2: Summary of tobacco strategy across Australian impacting low-income groups

(Source: Tobaccoinaustralia.org.au, 2019)
Impact of smoking on the four components of human health
Smoking affects the life of every individual in several ways overlooking their well-being and
such can be understood by analysing the Wellness Wheel created by UNH for studying the
different aspects of an individual’s life interconnected to the effects of smoking and
suggesting the measures of development. In a Wellness Wheel, there are several categories
like Emotional Health, Financial Health, Environmental Health, Occupational Health,
Intellectual Health, Social Health, Physical Health and Spiritual Health all of which are
affected by an individual’s smoking habit, as discussed in the following sections (Healthy
UNH, 2019).
Figure: Wellness Wheel
(Source: "Tobacco and the Wellness Wheel", 2019)
 Emotional Health – Smoking affects and worsens psychological health of an
individual and quitting tobacco enables the maintenance of stable hormonal levels,
aiding in happiness and emotional health. Without the habit of smoking, happiness
can be felt without the need of nicotine with additional benefits like:
1. Easier to fall asleep

2. Lesser anxiety
3. Lessened depression
4. Reduced Post-Traumatic-Stress Disorder
 Physical Health – Smoking prevents preventable death rates, with even a single
cigarette affecting the mind and body driving it to detrimental conditions, affecting
even the infrequent smokers. Quitting tobacco helps in the following ways:
1. Lesser sick day
2. Decrement of cancer
3. Decreased heart diseases and strokes
4. Decreased emphysema and bronchitis
5. Increased development to medication
6. Decreased headache, arthritis, back aches and vision problems
7. Increased fertility and healing processes
 Mental Health – Smoking causes memory dysfunctions in adults, affecting the
prefrontal cortex development in adolescents. The brain development trajectory is
affected which deters functioning of pre-frontal cortex in addicted teenagers.
 Social Health – Smoking can be passive smoking and active smoking, and with the
majorities of public joints accepting mild smoking practices, passive smoking is a
common menace affecting children and a large varieties of population negating their
health. These involuntary smoke inhalation increases toxins from building up in the
body causing health problems like:
1. Increased respiratory infection like pneumonia and bronchitis
2. Increased and severe asthma
3. Heart diseases
4. Heart strokes
5. Respiratory tract infections
6. Lung cancer

Discussion and Conclusion
(Source: Aihw.gov.au, 2019)
Rate of Smoking in different population groups
Irrespective of the progresses in smoking reduction measures amidst Australian populaces,
smoking still causes preventable diseases and preventable deaths in the population with
certain groups affected more than the others. According to the graphical representation of the
data as under, it can be seen that smoking was observed routinely amongst people of age
range of 25-29 years and 40-49 years of age. Furthermore, the graph shows a reduced rate in
smoking over last 12 years showing less change in smoking habits in 60 year olds and
reduced smoking rates in 18-49 year olds. Young smokers have more affinity towards
battery-operated cigarettes aged 18-27 years which declined by 5.3% with increased age
group.

Figure: Comparative analysis amongst smokers of different age groups in 2001 and 2013
(Source: Aihw.gov.au, 2019)

Figure: Smoking prevalence amongst regular, daily, and current smoking Australians
according to their gender (14-18 years) 2016
(Source: "1.3 Prevalence of smoking—adults - Tobacco in Australia", 2019)
Health-care and societal measures
Social service providers like mental health facility, family services, alcohol services, drug
services, and homeless people based services target the high-prevalent smoking groups and
are most widely considered efficient in reducing smoking practices (Bryant, et al., 2011).
Family environment provision is another vital strategy which can be utilised for ceasing
smoking practices. Surveying the smokers through community based services via provision
of supportive care and advices also decrease smoking. Adopting societal policies reduces
relapse triggers and smoking acceptability.
Certain approaches which may be applied by social service providers are:
1. Revising and reviewing smoke-free organisational policy

2. Changing practice setting for de-normalising tobacco usage
3. Supporting and training staffs for quitting by confidence build-up
4. Routine care practices to clientele, via advices referring to Quitline.
5. Changed record systems to monitor smoking statuses.
Limitations of the Investigation
Most of the secondary sources obtained are based on socio-economic tobacco costs of 2004-
2005. There have been substantial changes in smoking patterns post 2005, and recent data on
these are mandatory for evaluating the effectiveness of policy measures. Smoking
behavioural data on population groups is also limited in relation to their potent harm,
inclusive of homelessness, mental illnesses, culturally diver populace, linguistically diverse
populace data, and drug-treatment data. Furthermore there is also unavailability of data in
relation to behavioural changes of smoking populace, their successful quit stories and how
they maintained cessation.
Future improvements
There are certain challenges which needs to be met in the future like:
 Changes in cultural behaviour and values across socially distinct and culturally
distinct communities to integrate tobacco-control practices and increase their success
rate
 Improvement in accessibility of medication and to cessation support of affected
individuals
 Changes in wider social attitude to smoking in lifestyle of disadvantageous groups
improving health awareness and economic benefit
 Improvement in monitoring smoking rate and smoking trends amongst
disadvantageous population
 Strengthened research work exploring the cessation effectiveness and smoking
interventions amongst the disadvantageous populace.

References
Aihw.gov.au. (2019). [online] Available at: https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/9d29c844-
57b0-4d68-808b-2dfd13aec28c/ah16-4-7-tobacco-smoking.pdf.aspx [Accessed 16 Sep.
2019].
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, (2009). From corrections to the community: a set
of indicators of the health of Australia’s prisoners. AIHW: Canberra.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, (2010). National Drug Strategy Household
Survey: survey report, in Drug statistics series no 252011, AIHW: Canberra.
Bryant, J., Bonevski, B, & Paul, C, Hull, P, O’Brien, J (2011). Implementing a smoking
cessation program in social and community service organisations: A feasibility and
acceptability trail. Drug and Alcohol Review.
Chaloupka, F., Straif, K and Leon, ME, (2011). Effectiveness of tax and price policies in
tobacco control. Tob Control. 20(3): p. 235-8.
Cougle, J., Zvolensky, M, Fitch, K, and Sachs-Ericsson, N, (2010). The role of comorbidity
in explaining the associations between anxiety disorders and smoking. Nicotine & Tobacco
Research. 12(4): p. 355-64.
Durkin, S.J., Wakefield, M.A. and Spittal, M.J., (2011). Which types of televised anti-
tobacco campaigns prompt more quitline calls from disadvantaged groups?. Health Education
Research, 26(6), pp.998-1009.
IGCD (Intergovernmental Committee on Drugs) (2013). National Tobacco Strategy 2012–
2018. Canberra: Department of Health and Ageing.
Kim, J.E. and Tsoh, J.Y., (2016). Cigarette Smoking Among Socioeconomically
Disadvantaged Young Adults in Association With Food Insecurity and Other Factors.
Preventing chronic disease, 13, pp.E08-E08.
MCDS (Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy) (2011). National Drug Strategy 2010–2015: a
framework for action on alcohol, tobacco and other drugs. Canberra: Department of Health
and Ageing.

Prevalence of smoking—adults - Tobacco in Australia. (2019). Retrieved 16 September 2019,
from https://www.tobaccoinaustralia.org.au/chapter-1-prevalence/1-3-prevalence-of-
smoking-adults
Rayson, D., (2011). Project Evaluation: Smoking Care NSW and Smoking Care Blacktown-
A report on a series of focus groups. Cancer Council NSW: Woolloomooloo.
Siahpush, M., Singh, G.K., Jones, P.R. and Timsina, L.R., (2010). Racial/ethnic and
socioeconomic variations in duration of smoking: results from 2003, 2006 and 2007 Tobacco
Use Supplement of the Current Population Survey. Journal of Public Health, 32(2), pp.210-
218.
Stafford, J., (2012). Australian drug trends 2010: findings from the illicit drugs reporting
system (IDRS). National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre.
Tobacco and the Wellness Wheel. (2019). Retrieved 16 September 2019, from
https://www.unh.edu/healthyunh/blog/tobacco/2017/11/tobacco-and-wellness-wheel
US Department of Health and Human Services, (2014). The health consequences of smoking
—50 years of progress: a report of the Surgeon General.
Www1.health.gov.au. (2019). [online] Available at:
https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/publications/publishing.nsf/Content/smoking-
disadvantage-evidence-brief/$FILE/Screen%20res-Smoking&Disad_ev%20brief.pdf
[Accessed 16 Sep. 2019].

APPENDIX
Interview Survey Sheet
1. Please check the box below that best describes your current situation regarding cigarette
smoking and the approximately number of years you have smoked or did smoke before
quitting.
 I currently smoke (less than 1 year).
 I currently smoke (1-3 years).
 I currently smoke (4-8 years).
 I currently smoke (9-15 years).
 I currently smoke (16-25 years).
 I currently smoke (more than 25 years).
 I used to smoke (less than 5 years).
 I used to smoke (6-15 years).
 I used to smoke (16-25 years).
 I used to smoke (over 25 years).
 I have only smoked a handful of times or less.
 I smoke very sporadically and/or on rare occasions.
 I have never smoked a single cigarette.
2. If you used to smoke, please indicate in the box below how many years ago since you quit,
and the method you used to quit (laser therapy, patches, prescription drugs, etc.). Feel free to
add any additional comments.

3. How old were you when you smoked your first cigarette?
 Less than 11 years old.
 Between 11 and 15 years old.
 Between 16 and 19 years old.
 Between 20 and 25 years old.
 Over 26 years old.
 I have never smoked a cigarette.
 Please indicate your current age and M/F (male/female)
4. What was the first drug you tried or experimented with? If it's not on the list, please list it
in the comment box. Feel free to make any additional comments.
 Alcohol.
 Cigarettes.
 Cigars.
 Marijuana.
 Methamphetamine.
 Cocaine.
 LSD/acid.
 Glue or other inhalants.
 Prescription drugs (in an illegal or abusive manner).
 Other (please specify)
 Question Title
5. If you smoke, please check all that apply regarding your behavior when smoking and
second-hand smoke. If you don't smoke, we'd still like your opinion on several of the
statements below.
 I always consider others around me when smoking and don't smoke in front of
children or non-smokers, unless they say it's okay.
 I abide by the law of the land, if it's legal to smoke, I do. If it's illegal to smoke, I
don't.
 It's my right to smoke most anywhere I want, if others don't like it, they have the right
to leave.
 If a non-smoker gets on my nerves, I will intentionally blow smoke toward them.

 I have kids, although they know I smoke, I don't smoke in front of them.
 I have kids, and sometimes smoke in front of them.
 I have kids and they don't know that I smoke.
 I am conscious not to let some people know that I smoke (i.e. parents, teachers, boss,
spouse, doctor, etc.).
 I do not hide the fact that I smoke from anyone.
 I do not believe secondhand smoke hurts anyone in any way.
 I have voted in elections regarding smoking ban issues, and have voted FOR them.
 I have voted AGAINST smoking bans.
 I have placed smoking limits on myself (i.e. don't smoke in my car, home, workplace,
etc.)
 I believe that businesses should decide if they want to allow smoking, and it's strictly
up to each indivdual business.
 Other (please specify)
6. Please indicate the level of importance that you believe each scenario had in your decision
to smoke your first cigarette. Skip this question if you have never smoked a single cigarette.
Your parents smoke/smoked.
 Extremely important
 Somewhat important
 Slightly important
 Not important at all
 Not applicable
Your parents or other close relatives encouraged you to try it.
 Extremely important
 Somewhat important
 Slightly important
 Not important at all
 Not applicable
Many of your friends smoke/smoked.

 Extremely important
 Somewhat important
 Slightly important
 Not important at all
 Not applicable
Many of your friends encouraged you to try it.
 Extremely important
 Somewhat important
 Slightly important
 Not important at all
 Not applicable
You knew someone that smoked that you looked up to and respected (i.e. teacher, sports star,
neighbor, someone at church, etc.).
 Extremely important
 Somewhat important
 Slightly important
 Not important at all
 Not applicable
You believe smoking is a sign of maturity.
 Extremely important
 Somewhat important
 Slightly important
 Not important at all
 Not applicable
You were able to buy or obtain cigarettes easily as a minor.
 Extremely important
 Somewhat important
 Slightly important
 Not important at all
 Not applicable

Feel free to make comments if you wish.