Medical Student Christina Saad

Tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship (TAPS) bans are effective in reducing smoking prevalence which has seen a drop of 20 per cent, according to new research out today.

The purpose of the Griffith University study, published today in Tobacco Control, was to discover if TAPS bans influenced smoking rates and behaviour.

The authors conducted a pooled analysis of published studies evaluating the effectiveness of TAPS bans with data from 71 countries.

Lead author Ms Christina Saad, a final-year medical student from Griffith’s School of Medicine and Dentistry, said the study found the ban also reduced the risk of taking up smoking by 37 per cent.

“According to the 2022 Australian Bureau of Statistics, more than one in ten Australian adults currently smoke,” Ms Saad said.

“Tobacco use continues to be the second leading cause of preventable disease and death in Australia, so the results from our study are heartening to see the TAPS bans are influencing smoking behaviour.

Dr Leopold Aminde

“However, it is important to note our research found no clear evidence that the TAPS ban significantly helped people to quit smoking.”

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s statistics found nearly 20,500 Australians died from tobacco use in 2018, equating to one death related to tobacco use every 26 minutes.

Senior author Dr Leopold Aminde said the results emphasised the importance of tobacco control through advertising, promotion and sponsorship bans for countries yet to implement such bans as part of efforts to stem smoking behaviour.

“For countries such as Australia with existing bans, it is imperative these are reviewed regularly and strengthened to address any emerging media trends and tobacco industry tactics which undermine these efforts and the benefits from reduced smoking rates,” Dr Aminde said.

The paper ‘Effectiveness of tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship bans on smoking prevalence, initiation and cessation: a systematic review and meta-analysis’ has been published in the British Medical Journal’s Tobacco Control.