Key Messages
- Smoking is the leading cause of death and disability in the UK, leading to 70,000 deaths each year and harming nearly every organ of the body. Over half of all lifelong smokers are killed by smoking-related diseases.
- Smoking is the leading cause of preventable cancers, causing around 1 in 4 of all UK cancer deaths, and significantly increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.
- Smoking is the biggest preventable cause of death and disease. The earlier someone quits smoking the better, but everyone can benefit from quitting
On this page
How does smoking impact health?
Globally, tobacco kills up to 2 in 3 people who use it long term. It is the only legal consumer product that normally kills when used exactly as intended. Each year, 8 million people worldwide and 70,000 people in England die due to tobacco. Tobacco smoke causes cancer by damaging the lungs and airway. It can also cause deadly or life-limiting heart and breathing problems. Smoking harms nearly every single organ in the body and causes a range of other diseases, such as diabetes, eye disease and dementia.
ASH fact sheet: Smoking and Cancer
ASH fact sheet: Smoking, the Heart and Circulation
ASH fact sheet: Smoking and Respiratory Disease
What’s in a cigarette?
Cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos, pipe tobacco and shisha (hookah or waterpipe) all contain chopped up tobacco leaves which are burnt and inhaled. The tobacco leaves contain nicotine, which is addictive, as well as many other chemicals which are extremely harmful to health. Cigarettes are by far the most common type in the UK.
Heated tobacco products also use tobacco, but heat it without burning. Heated tobacco products are not risk-free and are not currently recommended for smoking cessation by NICE.
Oral tobacco products include chewing tobacco, dip, betel quid and snus and are intended to be chewed or held in the mouth without being burnt. Although they don’t make smoke that reaches the lungs, they are still harmful to health.
How many people smoke in the UK?
About one out of every ten people in the UK smokes (10.6%). Smoking prevalence has been decreasing ever since 1974, when records began in the UK.
Since 2011, the largest fall in smoking prevalence has been among 18- to 34-year-olds. However, those aged 25 to 34 years still have the highest proportion of current smokers (14.0%).
A fifth (20.2%) of adults in the UK in routine and manual occupations smoke compared with one in twelve (7.9%) in managerial and professional occupations. Smoking is a key cause of inequity in health outcomes and financial status. Young people from disadvantaged backgrounds are twice as likely to smoke, transferring inequalities in smoking rates from generation to generation.
What about nicotine products like NRT and vapes?
Nicotine Replacement Therapy products (NRT), such as patches, gum and lozenges are used by smokers to help them quit smoking and are licensed as medicines.
Vapes, also known as e-cigarettes, work by heating an e-liquid which contains nicotine, flavourings, propylene glycol and vegetable glycerine. They do not contain tobacco. While vaping is not risk free, it is much less harmful than smoking in the short- and medium-term and is effective for helping adults who smoke to quit.
Nicotine pouches are placed inside the lip. They do not contain tobacco, but do contain nicotine. Nicotine pouches are not risk-free and are not currently recommended for smoking cessation by NICE. Snus, which is a similar product that contains tobacco, is illegal in the UK.
How can I quit smoking and what are the benefits of quitting?
Smoking is the biggest preventable cause of death and disease. It is highly addictive, and most people try many times to quit before they succeed. However, the chance of quitting successfully can be tripled with the help of behavioural support and pharmacological treatment.
The earlier someone stops smoking the better, but even those who are already ill from smoking related disease can benefit from quitting because it will reduce symptoms, improve treatment outcomes and increase chances of survival.
Some of the benefits of quitting smoking can be felt quickly: within days breathing becomes easier and within weeks circulation improves. Ten years after quitting smoking, the risk of death from lung cancer falls to about half that to someone who continues to smoke.
How many young people smoke and how does smoking impact children and young people?
Most adults who smoke first tried smoking when they were under 18. People who start smoking when young are more likely to become ill or die from smoking than those who start when they are older.
Young people growing up in households where people smoke are about three times more likely to start smoking themselves. Young people may also experience dangerous exposure to secondhand smoke from family members.
ASH fact sheet: Young People and Smoking