Smoking is expensive, and despite the impact of this bad habit on the wallet (even more in these times of inflation), three out of 10 smokers do not know how much they spend per month. But how much does a regular tobacco user (really) spend each year? According to one new study of the Alliance française contre le tabac published on January 9, 2023, the average monthly budget of a smoker today is 207 euros per month, or approximately 2,484 euros per year. And it is the most financially disadvantaged people who are impacted on a daily basis. “Tobacco consumption widens social and health inequalities”worries the association.
Indeed, the lower the income, the higher the prevalence of smoking. “Among people living below the poverty line, smoking can account for up to 30% of household expenses., affirms the French Alliance against tobacco. Expenses that can lead to more or less important sacrifices : if 70% affirm that they would use this budget to travel or go to the hairdresser if they did not smoke, one in five smokers affirms to have given up a purchase or an activity, particularly among 25-34 year olds (42%) . Worse still, half of them had to give up basic necessities such as food, hygiene products or health expenses to be able to buy cigarettes.
Smoking and precariousness
The French Alliance Against Tobacco remarks that tobacco has become “a strong social marker” : today there is “twice as many daily smokers” among French people whose income is the lowest and daily smoking prevalence is much higher when the level of education is low. It is also associated with unemployment: 47.5% among unemployed people compared to 26, 6% among working people.
“Farther from the healthcare system and less receptive to the usual prevention messages, these people are also less likely to access long-term support, as part of their smoking cessation.argues Marion Catellin, director of the Alliance Against Tobacco.
This is why she calls for a better information on the prescription and reimbursement of nicotine substituteswhich increase the chance by 50 to 70% ofstop smoking according to HAS. While they are still too little prescribed by doctors, the association calls for this treatment to be free: “If these substitutes were 100% reimbursed, more than three quarters of smokers believe they would be motivated to quit“, indicates the study.
They also ask “experimentation with financial incentives“which could encourage smokers to quit smoking: more than two-thirds of smokers say that receiving state aid could encourage them to quit smoking.
Source :
- The tobacco industry does not only ruin health – “Power to live” campaign, alliance against tobaccoJanuary 9, 2022
