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June 06, 2023
Wahine smoking drop positive for healthy future
Gideon Porter
Posted On June 6, 2023
Download AudioASH director Ben Youdan says two of the biggest success stories in the campaign for a Smokefree Aotearoa by 2025 have been rangatahi and wāhine Maori.
He says this year’s World Smokefree Day was a chance to celebrate one million kiwis who’ve given up smoking.
Fewer than 3 percent of youth are now smokers – but the relative decline has been even greater among Maori women. \
“Wāhine maori went from around 1 in 3 smoking two years ago, to 18 percent. So it dropped by a third in two years. No other group in Aotearoa has seen such a fast decline in smoking in the last two years, and I’ve been in this field in smokefree and health for more than 20 years and I’ve never ever seen a decline like it,” Mr Youdan says.
He says it is now the plus-35 smokers and Pasifika who are of most concern – although he says vaping continues to replace cigarettes – and while it’s not ideal it is certainly a better option.
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