health school

Smoking
Measure
• How often do you smoke tobacco at present?
(every day, at least once a week, less than
once a week, I do not smoke).
Weekly smoking by age and gender
Across all age groups, 3% of young people reported smoking
at least once a week, (2% of boys and 3% of girls). Weekly
smoking increased with age and was higher among girls
than boys (Figure 4.1). For the first time in the HBSC England
survey weekly smoking rates were reported as zero among
11 year olds.
Figure 4.1: Young people who smoke weekly
25%
20%
15%
Boys
10%
5%
0%
0%
0%
2%
3%
6%
8%
Girls
11 years
13 years 15 years
Base: All respondents in 2014
The proportion of regular smokers decreased during the period from 2002 to 2014, with girls more likely to report smoking
regularly than boys across all time points (Figure 4.2).
Figure 4.2: Young people who smoke at least once a week, by gender 2002-2014
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
15%
11% 9%
7%
7%
4% 3%
2%
2002
2006 2010 2014
Boys
Girls
Base: All respondents in 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014
50
HBSC England National Report