World No Tobacco Day: Which countries smoke the most?

What nations smoke the most?

The WHO says the following countries have the highest percentages of daily smokers:

1. Lebanon, 58.8
2. Guinea, 57.6
3. Nauru, 48.2
4. Kiribati, 42
5. Bulgaria, 39.7
6. Lesotho, 39.3
7. Tuvalu, 37.9
8. Ukraine, 37.4
9. Andorra, 36
10. Laos, 35.7

Madagascar had the lowest reported rate, at 0.1 percent of the adult population.

While this is the most recent global data, it is self-reported by each country. Not all countries report data, and the data available does not all come from the same year (Lebanon, for example, last reported data in 2002, and Guinea last reported in 1998).

Data on worldwide tobacco use remains limited. The WHO in 2007 launched the Global Adult Tobacco Survey to measure tobacco use. Thus, far, only 14 countries have submitted data.

Turkey and Syria have recently enacted no-smoking legislation, and Egypt has passed legislation to increase taxation, signaling progress in the Middle East on reducing tobacco use. But it will take time before a dent – if any – is seen in tobacco use, says Sara Mirza, an epidemiologist at the Global Tobacco Control Branch of CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health.

“We did not have a consistent way of measuring tobacco control measures in countries,” says Dr. Mirza. “This is the first time we have cross-country data," which will allow the WHO and CDC to better analyze smoking trends worldwide.

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