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This page presents information about trends in indicators related to smoking.

Table of contents

Adult smoking prevalence

Persons, 18+ years

Time period South East Value 95% confidence interval lower limit 95% confidence interval upper limit England Value
2011 18.2 17.6 18.9 19.8
2012 17.9 17.3 18.6 19.3
2013 17.2 16.5 17.8 18.4
2014 16.5 15.8 17.1 17.8
2015 15.9 15.3 16.5 16.9
2016 14.6 13.9 15.2 15.5
2017 13.7 13.0 14.3 14.9
2018 12.9 12.3 13.5 14.4
2019 12.2 11.5 12.8 13.9
2020 12.6 11.8 13.3 13.8
2021 11.9 11.2 12.6 13.0
2022 11.5 10.8 12.3 12.7
2023 10.6 9.8 11.4 11.6

You can find more information about this indicator and related data on our Fingertips website. Fingertips is a data platform that contains a large range of indicators organised into topics, such as tobacco, mental health, and mortality.

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Source: Annual Population Survey (APS)

The line chart shows the percentage of people aged 18 or over who smoke. The proportion in the South East decreased from 18.2% in 2011 to 10.6% in 2023.


Mothers who smoke

Female, all ages

Time period South East Value 95% confidence interval lower limit 95% confidence interval upper limit England Value
2010/11 11.9 11.7 12.1 13.6
2011/12 11.6 11.4 11.8 13.3
2012/13 11.4 11.2 11.6 12.8
2013/14 10.9 10.7 11.0 12.2
2014/15 10.4 10.2 10.6 11.7
2015/16 9.8 9.6 10.0 11.0
2016/17 9.7 9.5 9.9 10.7
2017/18 9.9 9.7 10.1 10.8
2018/19 9.7 9.5 9.9 10.6
2019/20 9.7 9.5 9.9 10.4
2020/21 9.0 8.8 9.2 9.6
2021/22 8.2 8.0 8.3 9.1
2022/23 8.1 8.0 8.3 8.8
2023/24 6.8 6.7 7.0 7.4

You can find more information about this indicator and related data on our Fingertips website. Fingertips is a data platform that contains a large range of indicators organised into topics, such as tobacco, mental health, and mortality.

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Source: Calculated by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities from the NHS England return on Smoking Status At Time of delivery (SATOD)

The line chart shows the percentage of mothers who are smokers at the time of delivery. The proportion in the South East decreased from 11.9% in the financial year ending 2011 to 6.8% in the financial year ending 2024.


Hospital admissions attributable to smoking

Persons, 35+ years

Time period South East Value 95% confidence interval lower limit 95% confidence interval upper limit England Value
2015/16 1,178 1,169 1,187 1,572
2016/17 1,089 1,080 1,098 1,428
2017/18 1,048 1,039 1,056 1,428
2018/19 1,007 998 1,015 1,426
2019/20 1,012 1,003 1,020 1,398

You can find more information about this indicator and related data on our Fingertips website. Fingertips is a data platform that contains a large range of indicators organised into topics, such as tobacco, mental health, and mortality.

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Source: Admissions data from Hospital Episode Statistics (HES); Office for National Statistics (ONS) - mid-year population estimates; Smoking prevalence data from Annual Population Survey; and relative risks from the Royal College of Physician’s Report ‘Hiding in Plain Sight’

The line chart shows the rate of hospital admissions attributable to smoking. The directly standardised rate in the South East decreased from 1178 per 100,000 in the financial year ending 2016 to 1012 per 100,000 in the financial year ending 2020.


Deaths attributable to smoking

Persons, 35+ years

Time period South East Value 95% confidence interval lower limit 95% confidence interval upper limit England Value
2013 - 15 209 207 212 244
2014 - 16 189 187 191 221
2015 - 17 186 184 188 219
2016 - 18 179 177 181 212
2017 - 19 171 169 173 202

You can find more information about this indicator and related data on our Fingertips website. Fingertips is a data platform that contains a large range of indicators organised into topics, such as tobacco, mental health, and mortality.

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Source: Mortality data from the ONS mortality file; ONS mid-year population estimates; Smoking prevalence data from Annual Population Survey; and relative risks from the Royal College of Physician’s Report ‘Hiding in Plain Sight’.

The line chart shows the rate of deaths attributable to smoking. The directly standardised rate in the South East decreased from 209 per 100,000 in 2013 to 2015 to 171 per 100,000 in 2017 to 2019.


Successful smoking quitters

Persons, 16+ years

Time period South East Value 95% confidence interval lower limit 95% confidence interval upper limit England Value
2013/14 3,299 3,208 3,391 3,743
2014/15 2,767 2,688 2,847 2,900
2015/16 2,363 2,294 2,435 2,598
2016/17 2,053 1,986 2,122 2,245
2017/18 1,797 1,737 1,861 2,070
2018/19 1,944 1,872 2,016 1,894
2019/20 2,060 2,029 2,090 1,808
2020/21 1,701 1,635 1,771 1,671
2021/22 1,796 1,723 1,870 1,627
2022/23 1,824 1,745 1,909 1,620

You can find more information about this indicator and related data on our Fingertips website. Fingertips is a data platform that contains a large range of indicators organised into topics, such as tobacco, mental health, and mortality.

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Source: Population Health Analysis Team, Department for Health and Social Care

The line chart shows the rate of smokers who have successfully quit for 4 weeks or more. The crude rate in the South East decreased from 3299 per 100,000 smokers aged 16+ in the financial year ending 2014 to 1824 per 100,000 smokers aged 16+ in the financial year ending 2023.