ArticleTobacco control2025
Smoking prevalence and purchasing of menthol cigarettes since the menthol flavour ban in Great Britain: a population-based survey between 2020 and 2023.
Article in Tobacco control, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Menthol Characterizing Flavors in Cigarettes on Sale in England After a Characterizing Flavor Ban: Findings From Sensory and Chemical Assessments.Nicotine & tobacco research : official journal of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco · 2025Article
- Roll-Your-Own Tobacco Use Among People Smoking Menthol Cigarettes in Great Britain, 2020-2023: A Population-Based Survey.Nicotine & tobacco research : official journal of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco · 2025Article
- Likely Response to a Hypothetical Menthol Cigarette Ban Among Adults with Mood Disorders Who Smoke Menthol Cigarettes and Have No Current Plans to Quit Smoking.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Article
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundMenthol cigarettes have been banned in Great Britain (GB) since May 2020. Still, menthol accessories and unlabelled cigarettes perceived as mentholated are available, and people can buy menthol cigarettes overseas or illicitly. This study assessed: trends in smoking menthol cigarettes among all adults and 18-24-year-olds in GB between October 2020 and March 2023; trends in and differences between England, Scotland and Wales during the same period and purchase sources among people smoking menthol versus non-flavoured cigarettes.
methodsPopulation-weighted data were from a monthly cross-sectional survey of adults in GB. Among people smoking cigarettes, we calculated the proportion smoking menthol cigarettes across all adults and 18-24-year-olds, and prevalence ratios (PR) between the first and last quarter. We also calculated the proportions of people smoking menthol/non-flavoured cigarettes by purchase source (including illicit sources).
resultsIn the first quarter, 16.2% of adults smoking cigarettes reported menthol cigarette smoking with little to no decline throughout the study (PR 0.85, 95% CI 0.71 to 1.01), while it declined among 18-24-year-olds (PR 0.75, 95% CI 0.63 to 0.89). The prevalence of menthol cigarette smoking fell by two-thirds in Wales (PR 0.36, 95% CI 0.19 to 0.62) but remained relatively stable in England (PR 0.88, 95% CI 0.72 to 1.06) and Scotland (PR 0.94, 95% CI 0.59 to 1.53). The main purchasing sources were licit (93.9%), 14.8% reported illicit sources and 11.5% cross-border purchases, without notable differences from people smoking non-flavoured cigarettes.
conclusionsRoughly one million adults in GB still smoke menthol cigarettes and, with the exception of Wales and young people, there were no noteworthy changes in the post-ban period. There was no indication that the overall persistence of menthol smoking was driven by illicit purchases.
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