Ukrainian men are among the heaviest smokers in Europe and smoking levels are increasing rapidly among Ukrainian women. This is good news for transnational tobacco companies - the biggest advertisers in the country. How can tobacco control policies counter the influence of heavy advertising? Whom should policies target?

A study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine analyses smoking prevalence, behaviour and beliefs in the Ukraine, and highlights priorities for tobacco control. Two key areas for concern are the increase in female smokers and the tendency for men and women to start smoking at a younger age than previous generations.

Among women aged 18 to 29 years, more than 38 percent are current or former smokers while the figure is just over four percent for women aged 50 or older. The average age at which smokers between the ages of 18 and 29 years began smoking is about 15 for men and 17 for women. For male and female smokers over the age of 50, the average starting age is about 17 and 20 respectively.

Other findings from the study include:

• Overall levels of smoking in the Ukraine are 31 percent - 57 percent of men and 10 percent of women.
• Smoking is most common among men aged 30 to 39 years - two thirds are current smokers. The majority of women smokers are between 18 and 29 years old.
• Although smoking is banned on public transport and restricted in the workplace, 58 percent of smokers light up at work, 22 percent smoke on buses and 19 percent in restaurants.
• 12.8 percent of smokers compared to 2.3 percent of non-smokers believe that smoking may be good for or make no difference to health.
• People from urban areas are more likely to smoke than those living in villages, particularly among women. Female city dwellers are almost ten times more likely to smoke than village residents.
• Smoking is also associated with deprivation, particularly unemployment and absence from social networks, but there is no clear link with education or occupation.

The burden of tobacco-related mortality will be considerable in the Ukraine over the next few decades unless appropriate tobacco control measures are put in place. The impact on women will be particularly noticeable as smoking has traditionally been rare in this group. Policymakers should:

• take further measures to reduce smoking in public places and enforcing existing legislation
• run health education campaigns on the impact of active and passive smoking
• introduce complete bans on tobacco advertising and stronger enforcement of current legislation such as clear health warnings on adverts.

Source(s):
‘Epidemiology of Smoking in Ukraine, 2000’, Preventive Medicine 33: 453-461, by A. Gilmore et al., 2001
HINARI subscribers can access the full-text article here. Full document.

Funded by: UK Department for International Development

id21 Research Highlight: 08 May 2002

Further Information:
Anna B C Gilmore
ECOHOST
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Keppel Street
London
WC1E 7HT
UK

Tel: +44 (0)20 7612 7809
Fax: +44 (0)20 7612 7812
Contact the contributor: anna.gilmore@lshtm.ac.uk

London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK

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