Smoking and the environment: actions and attitudes

ENGLISH :
Nearly forty per cent (39.4%) of Europeans smoke, while far more (41.6%) have never smoked than have stopped smoking (18.5%). In 1995, 33.9% of Europeans smoked. Regionally-based variations cannot be said to exist, as both northern and southern EU countries have countries with more (United Kingdom, France, Denmark, Greece) and with fewer (Ireland, Luxembourg, Sweden, Portugal) smokers. The plurality of respondents (33.3%) do not read information on tar and nicotine placed on cigarette packages but, if they do, are not influenced by them (22.8%). More than two-thirds of all respondents (67.6%) do not think that health warnings placed on cigarette packages will cause people to smoke less or to stop smoking. There is some regionally-based variation as to whether non-smoking laws are respected or not, with countries of southern Europe (in particular Italy with 72.1% and Greece with 68.2%) generally not respecting the regulations. More than two-thirds (71.8%) of all respondents believe that second-hand smoke can cause either such problems as respiratory ailments (35.6 %) or can even cause long-term illness, such as cancer (36.2%). Radioactivity, chemicals and the quality of food products are the top three environmental aspects which Europeans (95.3, 93.3 and 88.6 per cent, respectively) believe have an impact on health. Quality of air outdoors, noise and quality of air indoors are, however, believed to be the top three environmental causes of their own or family members' health problems at 8.7, 7.6 and 5.3%, respectively. (Author' s abstract)