In France, from January 1, the pack of cigarettes will increase by fifty cents, or even one euro more. This is more than what the government announced in its previous plan, because tobacco companies have not reduced their margins to compensate for inflation and the increase in tobacco taxes. These price increases still do not prevent France from being among the poor performers in Europe. Nearly a quarter of adults smoke daily.
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Contrary to what one might believe, the price of a packet of tobacco is not the most effective way to prevent people from smoking. “ More than the question of the price in absolute value, it is the increases. There would need to be an increase of 20%. A packet of cigarettes costs eleven euros, an immediate increase of two euros would be necessary. That is to say, if they want to increase the price of a packet of cigarettes to thirteen euros, today there should already be these two extra euros put on the packet of cigarettes. », Explains Nicolas Bonnet, president of the Network of health establishments for the prevention of addictions.
Develop psychosocial skills
Even though there has been progress in prevention, particularly for young people, much remains to be done to keep them away from tobacco. “ If we want to reduce consumption among young people, at 17 years old, that means that we must also increasingly develop, as many European countries do, psychosocial skills among the youngest. That is to say, we must ensure that from three, four, five or six years old, we do not develop information on drugs, but on self-esteem, speaking up, management of emotions, relationships with others… All these so-called psychosocial skills are crucial during adolescence to prevent risk-taking. », underlines Nicolas Bonnet.
The Ministry of Health launched a mission on “ the roots of addictive behavior among young people “. Its findings are expected early next year.