Abstract
Background: Smoking prevalence in Singapore has increased from 12.6 % in 2006 to 14.3% in 2011 despite restrictions on tobacco advertising and promotion act, largely due to the strategies of the tobacco industry such as cigarette packaging suggesting lower tar content to target the young and the health conscious. Objectives: To review the perception of health risks of different types of cigarettes across smoking status, age-group and gender, and to determine if smokers perceive differences in health risks based on the taste of cigarettes alone. Method: 240 smokers and 240 non-smokers were presented with cigarette boxes a pair each time and were asked a series of questions on perception of tar content, taste and perceived health risk. Participants who identified themselves as smokers were blindfolded and asked to take 2 puffs of each cigarette type and asked to rate for 'Presence of tar', 'Smoothness of taste' and 'Health risk'. Results: A significant majority of the participants selected 'regular' cigarettes as delivering more tar than 'light' and 'menthol' cigarettes, while 'lights' and 'menthol' cigarettes were perceived as smoother-tasting and being able to reduce health risks. Non-smokers were more susceptible to perceive 'lights' cigarettes as a 'healthier' choice, compared to smokers, but not females or adolescents. Smokers, based on taste alone, rated regular cigarettes to be higher in health risks compared to both 'lights' and 'menthol' cigarettes, which were similarly rated. Discussion: The perception of health risks across different types of cigarettes are affected by the deceptive descriptors on the packaging, but the local increase in prevalence of youth and female smoking cannot be explained by their susceptibility to packaging influences. Taste of cigarettes seems to affect smokers' perception of health-risks as well; hence bans on deceptive descriptors on cigarette packaging may not totally eliminate differences in perception of health risks of different types of cigarettes.
Highlights
The prevalence of smoking has decreased since the 1950s to 2007 in the United States,[1] driven largely by widespread publicity regarding the harmful effects of smoking and restrictions on tobacco advertising and promotion.[2]
When lights and menthol cigarettes were compared, 71% perceived lights as delivering lower tar and being able to reduce health risks compared to menthol cigarettes, though menthol cigarettes were perceived as smoother-tasting than lights ones
Smokers were more likely than non-smokers to perceive menthol cigarettes as being able to reduce health risks compared to lights cigarettes
Summary
The prevalence of smoking has decreased since the 1950s to 2007 in the United States,[1] driven largely by widespread publicity regarding the harmful effects of smoking and restrictions on tobacco advertising and promotion.[2] smoking prevalence in Singapore has decreased from 20% in 1984 to 12.6% in 2004.3 smoking prevalence in Singapore has increased since to 14.3%.4. As the industry recognized consumers’ concern for health risks, industry players tried to allay the public’s health concern by introducing a ‘healthier selection’ of cigarettes They promoted the perception that some cigarettes might be less hazardous, so as to increase their popularity among the currently more well-informed and health-conscious consumers. Taste of cigarettes seems to affect smokers’ perception of health-risks as well; bans on deceptive descriptors on cigarette packaging may not totally eliminate differences in perception of health risks of different types of cigarettes
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