Israel’s smoking rate holds steady as youth e-cigarette use raises new concerns
Israel’s adult smoking rate has remained virtually unchanged for nearly a decade despite government efforts to reduce tobacco use, while growing numbers of children and teens are experimenting with e-cigarettes, according to the Health Ministry’s…
Assessment
The Health Ministry's annual report shows that Israel's adult smoking rate has been stagnant at roughly 23% for nearly a decade, indicating that current anti-smoking campaigns are not achieving their intended effect. A new and separate concern is the rise in e-cigarette experimentation among children and teens, which the report highlights as a growing public health challenge. The report's warning that about half of smokers will die prematurely underscores the severity of the issue. The next step will be to see how the Knesset responds to this data and whether new policy measures are proposed.