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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 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
2022 11.5 10.8 12.3 12.7

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 11.5% in 2022.


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 12.2
2014/15 10.4 10.2 10.6 11.7
2015/16 9.8 9.6 10 11
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 8.8 9.2 9.6
2021/22 8.2 8 8.4 9.1
2022/23 8.1 8 8.3 8.8

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 8.1% in the financial year ending 2023.


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 1178 1169 1187 1572
2016/17 1089 1080 1098 1428
2017/18 1048 1039 1056 1428
2018/19 1007 998 1015 1426
2019/20 1012 1003 1020 1398

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 1,178 per 100,000 in the financial year ending 2016 to 1,012 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 3299 3208 3391 3743
2014/15 2767 2688 2847 2900
2015/16 2363 2294 2435 2598
2016/17 2053 1986 2122 2245
2017/18 1797 1737 1861 2070
2018/19 1944 1872 2016 1894
2019/20 2060 2029 2090 1808
2020/21 1701 1635 1771 1671
2021/22 1796 1723 1870 1627
2022/23 1824 1745 1909 1620

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.

View successful smoking quitters data.

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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 3,299 per 100,000 smokers aged 16+ in the financial year ending 2014 to 1,824 per 100,000 smokers aged 16+ in the financial year ending 2023.