ASH Australia media release                                             June 2, 2006

Tobacco shop displays predispose children to smoke

New study backs call to put tobacco out of sight in shops

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Tobacco displays in shops are having a harmful effect on children by making them more familiar with tobacco products and helping to predispose them towards smoking, says a new Australian study of 605 Year 9 schoolchildren.

Health groups have renewed their calls for tobacco displays to be out of sight in shops following the findings – in the face of claims by tobacco retailers that their prominent displays are not influencing children to smoke.

The new study from The Cancer Council Victoria* examined the impact on 605 Year 9 students of seeing representations of convenience store displays with tobacco advertised, displayed, or out of sight.

Where tobacco was prominently displayed, the children:

• perceived it would be easier for them to buy tobacco from the shop and from shops generally, evading underage controls; and

• recalled brands more.

The authors called for tougher restrictions, noting that other research confirms that displays were normalising smoking to children, that retail advertising “influenced students, and tended to weaken students’ resolve not to smoke in future” .

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) Australia Chief Executive Anne Jones commented:

“This study is further proof that tobacco displays influence children’s attitudes – making it more likely that they will want to experiment by obtaining cigarettes from shops – as thousands of them are already doing despite laws banning sales to children. 

“The study refutes the claim by tobacco retailer organisations who have lobbied state governments - notably in South Australia and NSW - against removing tobacco from view.

“The powerful tobacco sellers’ lobby has falsely argued that shop display doesn’t influence people’s intention to smoke. Of course it does – otherwise why would cigarette companies spend fortunes on securing prominent front-of-shop display positions?

“It’s time to put health of children ahead of the retailers’ commercial interests. About 20% of children are illegally supplied cigarettes by retailers - and in NSW alone, 17,000 children purchased their last cigarette from a retailer, despite laws banning sales to children.”

* Wakefield M et al, “An experimental study of effects on schoolchildren of exposure to point-of-sale cigarette advertising and pack displays”, in Health Education Research  (May 15, 2006) - abstract at http://her.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/cyl005v1

Comment:               
Anne Jones, CEO ASH Australia                ph. (02) 9334-1876;  m. 0417-227-879

Media info:             
Stafford Sanders, ASH Australia                 ph. (02) 9334-1823;  m. 0412-070-194

Page last updated 2/2/06