No Smoking ‘Til 18 – Will This Make A Difference?

According to The Scotsman – Scottish Ministers are preparing to make the legal age for buying tobacco 18 – but will this make much difference?

This move comes hot on the heels of Scotland becoming one of the first countries to ban smoking in public places, and I think it is great that they are taking bold steps towards improving their nation’s health – however, I am not sure that this change will have the same impact.

I imagine the thinking is that it will slowly change the age at which people first start to think about smoking. Because the legal age at present is 16, it means that kids as young as 11 are exposed to smoking in their peer group, and children as young as 14 can look old enough to buy cigarettes.

Their statistics suggest that:

about 6 per cent of 13-year-olds and 19 per cent of 15-year-olds smoke regularly but it is more prevalent among teenage girls than boys – 24 per cent of 15-year-old girls smoke compared with 14 per cent of 15-year-old boys.

I should imagine then, that this move will hope to decrease the number of kids smoking from a young age by decreasing the exposure to smoking within their peer group – this is something that will hopefully snowball as time goes on.

However, I think it will take a while before any real effect is noticable. Kids still drink from 14, and they have an uncanny ability to get hold of alcohol regardless. So while this may end up raising the age that kids start smoking – I should imagine that it will take a minor miracle to actually stop all smoking under the age of 18.

Still – good look to them – I really hope it does!