Different tobacco and related products, like waterpipe, e-cigarettes, are gaining popularity among adolescents in different countries; the data for Slovenia is currently limited. The purpose of this ...paper is to present the latest data on the use of different tobacco and related products, with or without flavours, among 15-year old students in Slovenia.
Data for 15-year-old students were drawn from 2014 Slovene database of the cross-national survey Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children. The survey sample was selected with stratified two-stage sampling method. The survey was performed in schools with a self-administered web questionnaire. The survey questionnaire included international compulsory, selected optional and national questions, all on a variety of topics related to youth health behaviour.
25.2% of 15-year-old students reported current (past 30-day) use of any tobacco related product, mainly cigarettes (93.1% of users), followed by waterpipe (11.7%) and cigars, cigarillos and pipes (9.4%). Exclusive use of unconventional products is low (5.1% of users). 85.5% of users of any product used one product, 48.5% of users used products with flavours. The use of different products, one or more products, and flavoured products was related to gender.
A comprehensive tobacco control and prevention must address all tobacco and related products.
In the first months of 2020, the SARS-CoV-2 virus spread all over the world and numerous measures were adopted that had a strong impact on both personal and public life. This contribution explores ...changes in alcohol and tobacco use during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Slovenia.
Self-reported changes in alcohol and tobacco use during the first few months of the Covid-19 pandemic were recorded in 495 Slovenian adults, as part of the European Alcohol Use and COVID-19 survey.
About half of the Slovenian sample indicated that the frequency of drinking occasions did not change in the months after the pandemic's outbreak, while the remainder stated either a decrease (26.0%) or an increase (24.2%). 23.1% reported a decrease and 17.3% an increase in the quantity of alcohol consumed per occasion. Respondents who reported that their overall alcohol consumption decreased were more likely to be male than female and more likely to be younger than middle-aged. Those who reported experiencing at least a substantial level of distress due to financial loss were at a four-times increased risk of reporting an increase in their alcohol consumption compared to individuals who reported no or only some financial distress. Of the 120 people reporting the use of tobacco, almost half indicated an increase in tobacco consumption within the previous month, and about 20% reported a decrease in use. The differences in the results between Slovenia and other European countries are small and the overall pattern suggests that the situation in Slovenia was comparable to other European countries.
As this pandemic continues to evolve, further monitoring is needed to identify the long-term effects of alcohol and tobacco use on public health in relation to the management of COVID-19.
Background. Smoking is initiated mostly by adolescents and young adults. In Slovenia, we have limited data about this. The purpose of this paper is to show data on age at smoking initiation and ...differences in age at smoking initiation by gender, age groups, education, social class and geographical region among inhabitants of Slovenia.
Methods. We used data from the cross-sectional survey ‘Health-related behaviour 2012’ in Slovenian population aged from 25 to 74 years.
Results. 4591 ever smokers, aged 25-74, that gave information about the age at smoking initiation were included in the analysis. At the age of 25 or less, smoking was initiated by 96.7% of Slovene ever smokers, at the age of 18 or less by 71.0%. The average age at smoking initiation was 17.7 years. Male ever smokers initiated smoking at an earlier age compared to female ones. Age at smoking initiation was decreasing in both male and female ever smokers, but was more pronounced in females. In male ever smokers, there were no differences in average smoking initiation age by education, self-reported social class and geographical regions, while in female ever smokers, there were significant differences in terms of education and geographical regions.
Conclusion. The initiation of smoking predominantly occurs in adolescents and young adults. Age at smoking initiation has decreased in recent decades. Our study confirms the importance of early and sustained smoking prevention programmes in youth and the importance of national comprehensive tobacco control programme with effective tobacco control measures to ban tobacco products marketing.
Uvod. Podatki iz tujine kažejo, da začnejo kaditi praviloma mladostniki in mladi odrasli. Za Slovenijo imamo o tem malo podatkov. Namen prispevka je prikaz podatkov o starosti ob začetku kajenja in razlik v začetku kajenja glede na spol, starostne skupine, izobrazbo, družbeni sloj in geografsko regijo med prebivalci v Sloveniji.
Metode. Uporabili smo podatke iz presečne pregledne raziskave »Z zdravjem povezan vedenjski slog 2012« med prebivalci Slovenije, starimi od 25 do 74 let.
Rezultati. V analizo je bilo vključenih 4591 posameznikov, starih 25-74 let, ki so kadarkoli v življenju kadili, in so podali podatke o starosti ob začetku kajenja. V starosti 25 let ali manj je prvič kadilo 96,7% prebivalcev, ki so kadarkoli v življenju kadili, v starosti 18 let ali manj pa 71,0 %. Povprečna starost ob prvem kajenju je bila 17,7 leta. Moški, ki so kadili kadarkoli v življenju, so prvič kadili pri nižji povprečni starosti kot ženske. Povprečna starost ob začetku kajenja se je zniževala pri obeh spolih, a izraziteje med ženskami. V povprečni starosti ob začetku kajenja pri moških, ki so kadili kadarkoli v življenju, ni razlik glede na izobrazbo, samoporočani družbeni sloj in geografsko regijo, medtem ko so pri ženskah prisotne značilne razlike glede na izobrazbo in geografsko regijo. Ženske z najvišjo stopnjo izobrazbe, ki so kadile kadarkoli v življenju, in tiste iz vzhodne geografske regije so prvič kadile pri nižji starosti.
Zaključek. Kaditi začnejo in nadaljujejo do rednega kajenja večinoma mladostniki in mladi odrasli. Starost ob začetku kajenja se je v zadnjih desetletjih zniževala. Podatki iz raziskave potrjujejo pomembnost zgodnjih in dolgotrajnih programov preprečevanja kajenja med mladimi ter nacionalnega celovitega programa ukrepov nadzora nad tobakom za zaustavitev marketinga tobačnih izdelkov.
INTRODUCTIONTo assess the feasibility of developing World Health Organization (WHO) European Region countries' goals and measures in line with tobacco endgame objectives, information on the current ...tobacco control context and capacity is needed. The aim of this study was to assess the implementation of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) and MPOWER measures in the region.METHODSIn this cross-sectional study we used data from the WHO FCTC implementation reports and MPOWER from 2020 in 53 WHO European Region countries. Six domains (i.e. capacity, taxation and price policies, other national key regulations, public awareness raising and communication, tobacco use cessation, and monitoring) were formed. Subsequently, available indicators under these domains were scored and the level of implementation was computed for each country. Mann-Whitney tests were carried out to compare the scores between the group of countries with and without official endgame goals.RESULTSOverall, implementation of the WHO FCTC with the selected indicators at the country level ranged from 28% to 86%, and of MPOWER from 31% to 96%. Full implementation was achieved by 28% of WHO FCTC Parties in the region in taxation and price policies, 12% in public awareness raising and communication, and 42% in monitoring. In capacity, tobacco use cessation and other national key regulations, none of the Parties in the region reached full implementation. Overall median WHO FCTC scores were significantly higher in countries with official endgame goals than in those without (p<0.001).CONCLUSIONSThere is unequal implementation of both WHO FCTC and MPOWER measures among WHO European Region countries. MPOWER and WHO FCTC provide all the measures for the necessary first steps, followed by innovative measures, to accomplish tobacco endgame goals.
INTRODUCTIONElectronic cigarettes (ECs) have generated extensive discussion about their role in smoking cessation. The Slovenia National Institute of Public Health's recommendations state that ECs ...are not to be recommended for smoking cessation or reduction. The aim of this study was to explore how healthcare professionals working in the field of preventive healthcare and smoking cessation in Slovenia communicate with and counsel patients regarding electronic cigarettes and smoking cessation or reduction. METHODSA cross-sectional, web-based survey was conducted among healthcare professionals working in the field of preventive healthcare and smoking cessation in Slovenia. A total of 479 healthcare professionals were included in the analysis. RESULTSWhile a minority of participants (12.7%) do or would recommend electronic cigarettes for smoking cessation or reduction in general, a higher proportion of participants (33.1%) would recommend electronic cigarettes to specific groups of patients. Knowledge on electronic cigarettes was the key determinant of differences in recommendations. Only a minority of participants (9.1%) reported availability of workplace guidelines/recommendations regarding counselling about electronic cigarettes. CONCLUSIONSTraining programmes, educational materials and existing guidelines/recommendations regarding counselling about electronic cigarette use should be provided and distributed among healthcare professionals, together with efforts to ensure compliance to official guidelines/recommendations.
Due to the continued detrimental effects of tobacco use, a growing number of countries are embracing the idea of tobacco endgame, meaning ending the tobacco epidemic instead of controlling it. This ...narrative review aims to synthesize and update the evidence from earlier scientific reviews on effective tobacco endgame measures, as well as to assess their integration to current national strategies among European countries with official tobacco endgame goals. The synthesis of the prior scientific literature found most evidence on product-focused and some evidence for supply-focused policies. Little evidence was detected for user- and institutional-focused measures. An update for the tobacco-free generation measure showed uncertainty in reducing smoking prevalence, especially for adolescents' reactions to age-restrictive laws. All the countries that established a tobacco endgame strategy have included product standards in their measures, predominantly based on European Union regulations on conventional tobacco products, yet standards above this level and considering other products were also common. Cessation measures were given strong emphasis in strategies, yet none of the countries linked these to specific endgame measures. Despite commonly mentioning vulnerable groups, such as youth and pregnant women, adoption of measures to reduce tobacco use among these groups was scarce. Lastly, the decline in tobacco use seems to be modest, implying challenges in meeting the endgame goals. To meet these goals, European countries should reinforce the implementation of known effective tobacco control measures such as tax increases. Furthermore, new innovative strategies and measures to meet the objective of an endgame should be explored.
Nicotine dependence is increasing worldwide due to a wide variety of new and emerging products (e.g. heated tobacco products, electronic cigarettes, nicotine pouches, novel herbal products) with ...tobacco and/or nicotine content, being continuously placed on the market, including online stores. Consumers of conventional tobacco cigarettes try to switch to heated tobacco products or electronic cigarettes but they risk to become dual users or even polyusers. Young people and adolescents are attracted by these new products, characterized by an eye-catching design as well as palatable flavourings. Considering the actual and the near future scenario of people increasingly addicted to different nicotine and/or tobacco products, Good Practice Statements (GPS) for the treatment of nicotine dependence are herein proposed, following the guidance of the GRADE working group. GPS are particularly needed giving the lack of large population studies including types of consumers of new and emerging products other than those exclusively using conventional tobacco cigarettes.
•Regulations to mitigate increasing electronic cigarette (ECIG) use vary significantly.•ECIG use is common but varies across the EU, Canada, and US.•Youth access laws and taxation are common policy ...strategies across regions.•Significant variation is common regarding regulation of nicotine concentration, flavors, and packaging/advertising policies.•Policy innovation offers rich opportunities to evaluate effective regulatory alternatives.
Increased electronic cigarette (ECIG) use has motivated new regulations to address the changing landscape of tobacco use and promote public health.
This policy scan compares ECIG prevalence and regulations in the European Union (EU), Canada, and the United States (US) at the federal- and local-level to foster a policy dialogue around modern tobacco prevention and control regulations.
Among young adults, 40 % in the US, 29 % in Canada, and 28 % in the EU report ever using an ECIG. Results from the policy scan find significant variation in approach to regulating ECIGs. EU member states are subject to the most stringent requirements regarding nicotine concentration regulations, and several member states have also opted to ban flavors and/or require plain packaging or out of sight retail sales. Among EU and US states, taxation is a popular strategy, though taxing strategies vary widely. Regarding youth use, US states have led the way for increasing the legal age of sale to 21 at the federal level, and in Canada recent federal regulations are innovative in their approach to banning advertising that may appeal to youth.
Strategies to achieve public health goals related to ECIGs vary widely, with federalism playing an important role in policy innovation, offering opportunities to evaluate their effectiveness and inform future regulations.
Uvod. Podatki iz tujine kažejo, da začnejo kaditi praviloma mladostniki in mladi odrasli. Za Slovenijo imamo o tem malo podatkov. Namen prispevka je prikaz podatkov o starosti ob začetku kajenja in ...razlik v začetku kajenja glede na spol, starostne skupine, izobrazbo, družbeni sloj in geografsko regijo med prebivalci v Sloveniji.
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