Smoking rates in Saxony are falling steadily: positive effects on health and wallets

The number of smokers in Saxony is slowly but steadily decreasing. "Young people in particular are using cigarettes or other tobacco products much less frequently today than at the beginning of the century," the State Statistical Office announced in Kamenz on Wednesday to mark World No Tobacco Day (May 31). According to an analysis of the microcensus, 21 percent of the population aged 15 and over smoked in 2021, 3.5 percent less than in 1999. The proportion of smokers among 15 to under 25-year-olds has also fallen - from a high of 37 percent in 2003 to 17.5 percent in 2021.

The smoking rate among men is higher than among women, but has also fallen steadily. In 1999, more than one in three men in Saxony smoked (33.6 percent), in 2021 only around one in four (25.7 percent). In contrast, the proportion of female smokers remained largely stable at between 16 and 18 percent.

With the decline in smoking behavior, it can be assumed that relevant diseases will also decrease in the future. For example, the number of malignant neoplasms of the trachea, bronchi and lungs in people aged 15 to under 65 years fell from 596 cases in 2013 to 423 cases in 2022.

Non-smoking also has an impact on the wallet. Tobacco products have become 53.7 percent more expensive since January 2015. Prices for tobacco and liquids for e-cigarettes have risen the most (69.1 percent), followed by cigarettes (51.5 percent) and cigars and cigarillos (31.3 percent).