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Quick links to detailed datasheets for Denmark at gsthr.org

Smoking in Denmark

The overall smoking prevalence in Denmark has been decreasing since 2006. 18.6% of the adult population in Denmark are current smokers, down from 32% in 2006. This means there are now approximately 893,810 smokers in the country. 18.4% of men smoke and for women the figure is 18.7%. The most recent data show there were 11,375 annual deaths from tobacco-smoking related diseases (approximately 5,400 women and 5,900 men). The annual percentage of all deaths attributable to tobacco smoking was 21.53% (women: 20.8%; and men: 22.2%). Nicotine vapes (e-cigarettes) are legal in Denmark and there are 157,200 vapers in the country, giving an adult vaping prevalence of 3.23%. There is a requirement to ensure vape packaging contains a health warning, and they can only be sold to those 18 and older. Vaping devices can be purchased without a prescription but there are legal restrictions on their use in public places. Heated tobacco products are legal and can be marketed, but the situation is a bit more complicated for snus. While it is illegal to import snus for trade or buy the product online, it is possible to import it for personal use. Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) can be marketed and it is available to buy in pharmacies without a prescription. The NRT market in Denmark is worth €42.2 million. For further information and full references, click through to the detailed datasheets above.

Read articles from Denmark

December 04, 2023 by filtermag.org

Advocates Dismayed at Denmark’s “Horrible” Nicotine Clampdown

Denmark’s government is introducing a package of 30 measures aimed at reducing young people’s consumption of nicotine and alcohol. The plans include raising taxes on nicotine products and banning flavors. Advocates are dismayed by the moves, which come despite other Scandinavian countries boasting some of the world’s biggest tobacco harm reduction success stories.

November 15, 2023 by euronews.com

Denmark to restrict sale of alcohol and nicotine to under 18-year-olds

Denmark is to restrict the sale of alcohol to under-18s and increase the price of suckable nicotine sachets, as their growing popularity is worrying health authorities, the Ministry of Health announced on Tuesday. [...] She also deplored the fact that young people were consuming more and more snus, a tobacco product which comes in the form of nicotine sachets that can be sucked. To counter these phenomena, the sale of drinks containing more than 6% alcohol will be banned for 16-18 year-olds, who until now have been allowed to buy drinks containing up to 16.5%.

April 12, 2023 by thelocal.dk

Smoking down but nicotine use up among Danish youth

Nicotine products such as snus, nicotine pouches, and vaping devices have become more popular among young people in Denmark in recent years, with fully 35.1 percent of 15- to 29-year-olds using them daily or regularly, up from 26.3 percent as recently as 2020. 

Use of cigarettes fell from 20.1 percent to 19 percent over the period while use of smokefree nicotine products rose from 9.1 percent to 12.9 percent. 

The numbers come from a study carried out by Denmark's National Institute of Public Health and the University of Southern Denmark on behalf of the Danish Health Authority. 

August 31, 2022 by medicalnewstoday.com

Smoking actually damages heart structure, study finds

Past research shows that smoking has a negative impact on a person’s blood vesselsTrusted Source — more than 30% of deathsTrusted Source from coronary heart disease occur from active smoking or secondhand smokeTrusted Source exposure. Now, researchers from Herlev and Gentofte Hospital in Copenhagen, Denmark, have found evidence suggesting that smoking not only impacts a person’s blood vessels but also weakens the structure of the heart itself, impacting how well it functions. 

April 08, 2022 by thelocal.dk

EU rules dampen Danish government plan to ban future cigarette sales

The government last month unveiled plans to ensure that future generations are tobacco-free by banning the sale of cigarettes and other nicotine products to anyone born after 2010.

People under 18 are not legally allowed to purchase cigarettes under current Danish laws, so although the ban would not have an effect for six years, it would prevent people born after 2010 from ever buying cigarettes.

But the Danish plan now looks unlikely in its current form because EU member states may not forbid the sale of tobacco, according to a response given to a parliamentary question by the health minister, Magnus Heunicke.

March 17, 2022 by euronews.com

Denmark proposes ban on selling cigarettes to people born after 2010

Denmark has unveiled plans to ban the sale of cigarettes and nicotine products to any citizens born after 2010.

The move aims to prevent the next generation of Danes from touching any form of tobacco, Health Minister Magnus Heunicke told a press conference.

"If necessary, we are ready to ban sales to this generation [born in 2010] by gradually raising the purchase age limit," Heunicke said.

 

Under current rules, Danish citizens under the age of 18 are banned from buying tobacco or smoking electronic cigarettes.

But around 31% of people aged between 15 and 29 still smoke, Heunicke said.