SMOKING rates are at a record low in Britain and vaping is now almost equally popular, figures show.
The Office for National Statistics classed 11.9 per cent of UK adults as cigarette smokers last year – about six million people.
It is the lowest since records began in 1974, when the figure was nearly half.
Fags are now especially uncool with young people, it found, with under-25s now less than half as likely to smoke as 10 years ago.
Rates among youngsters fell from 26 per cent in 2011 to 10 per cent in 2023.
It comes as ministers plan a smoking crackdown with a potential ban on sparking up in pub gardens, along with a rising legal age of purchase set out by Rishi Sunak.
Paul Rees, chief of the National Pharmacy Association, said: “It is good to see a reduction in levels of smoking.
“It remains one of the biggest causes of ill health in our communities.”
Smoking tobacco is known to cause at least 16 types of cancer, plus heart diseases and dementia.
Hazel Cheeseman, chief executive of campaign group Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), said: “These figures are further proof that the country is ready to be smokefree.”
Meanwhile, vaping is riding a wave of popularity with an estimated 5.1million over-16s using e-cigarettes every day or “occasionally” – 9.8 per cent.
That compares to 8.7 per cent in 2022.
Ex-smokers are most likely to use vapes but there has been a rapid rise in the number of never-smokers who have taken up the habit, to approximately 400,000 people.
We need to reinforce the role of vaping as a tool to stop smoking, not a lifestyle accessory
Professor Nick Hopkinson
Experts are concerned that this trend could lead more young people to smoke who never would have.
And although e-cigarettes are almost certainly safer than tobacco, their long-term health impacts are still not well understood.
The Government is likely to ban disposable vapes and those that come in brightly coloured devices or have fruity or sweet flavours that appeal to kids.
Professor Nick Hopkinson, a lung doctor in London and chair of the ASH campaign group, said: “Vaping has helped millions of adults quit smoking and is much less harmful than smoking.
“However, it is not risk-free and high levels of use among young people and growing use among never smokers is a concern.
“The government must get its Tobacco and Vapes Bill into law as soon as possible.
“We need to reinforce the role of vaping as a tool to stop smoking, not a lifestyle accessory.”
VAPING has been touted as an effective tool to help people quit smoking.
Though vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking, the habit isn’t completely harmless and comes with its own set of risks.
The NHS only recommends it for adult smokers, to support quitting smoking.
GP and author Dr Philippa Kaye explained to The Sun that the differences between vaping and smoking – and whether one is better than the other – is “complicated”.
“In a nutshell, vaping is better than smoking, but breathing air is better than vaping at all.”
Vaping exposes users to far fewer toxins – and at lower levels – than smoking cigarettes.
Switching to vaping significantly reduces your exposure to toxins that can cause cancer, lung disease, and diseases of the heart and circulation like heart attack and stroke.
These diseases are not caused by nicotine, which is relatively harmless to health. But research has still linked vaping to a higher risk of failure and lung disease.
Health risks of cigarettes
Health risks of vaping
Read more on how vaping can affect your health here.
Sources: NHS, CDC
