While the headline correctly reflects the latest findings, it presents a negative spin of research that found that the warnings appeared effective for those who’d never smoked and those who’d “experimented” with smoking.
Researchers surveyed children aged 11-16 in 2008 (when warnings on cigarette packets were text only) and a separate repeat sample in 2011 (after graphic images had been introduced).
Between 2008 and 2011, the proportion of children who noticed health warnings, looked closely at them and understood them did not change much. However, in 2011 recall of the three health warnings associated with the pictures increased. The proportion of all children who thought about health warnings often, and the proportions who thought the images could put them off smoking or make them less likely to smoke also increased.
However, these positive effects seemed to be limited to never smokers or experimental smokers, with no difference in regular smokers as suggested by the headlines. An increased proportion of regular smokers reported hiding the pack to “escape” the health image.
This research suggests how changes in cigarette packaging may impact on the thoughts and perceptions of UK children. But while there are both positive and negative findings, the research can’t tell us whether the changes have made any difference to the numbers of children starting or quitting smoking.
Where did the story come from?
The study was carried out by researchers from the Centre for Tobacco Control Research at the University of Stirling and was funded by Cancer Research UK. The study was published in the peer-reviewed journal, Tobacco Control.The news coverage of this study is generally representative, but has put a negative spin on the findings, ignoring the signs of some positive effects of the new images on cigarette packs.
What kind of research was this?
This was a repeat cross-sectional survey examining young people’s thoughts and understanding of the warnings on cigarette packets in 2008 and 2011.Many countries now have pictorial warnings on the dangers of smoking on cigarette packs, and a few countries, including Canada and Australia, have these warnings covering three-quarters of the pack surface.
However, the European Union (EU) has set lower standards. EU law requires the written warnings that are required on cigarette packs to be one of two general warnings covering 30-35% of the pack front, and one of 14 specific warnings covering 40-50% of the reverse. In 2005, The European Commission also adopted 42 images that could be included on the back of packs. However, few member states have adopted them, and none have used warning images that cover at least half of the pack surface.
The current study has examined the impact of warnings upon children before and after the introduction of pictorial warnings to packs in the UK. In 2008, textual warnings appeared on 43% of the front and 53% of the back of the pack. In 2011, the warnings were the same, except that images supported the warning on the back of the pack.
