Aussie smokers undeterred by anti-smoking ads, policies: research

Plain-packaged cigarettes and anti-smoking advertisements and policies are not as effective in deterring smokers as first thought, a study into the habits of Australian smokers has found.

Researchers at the Australian National University (ANU) have found that many smokers were unaffected by the health warnings while, shockingly, some smokers were seeking out cigarettes in spite of them.

Associate Professor Simone Dennis from the ANU said her research uncovered a worrying trend in young, pregnant women, who were encouraged to smoke by some of the gruesome warnings found on Australian cigarette packs.

"(The young, pregnant women) were absolutely terrified of giving birth to a large baby, that was their primary fear," Dennis said in a statement on Friday.

"So they would seek out packets that had the message smoking could make a baby smaller, and deliberately smoke in order to accomplish that aim."

Dennis said that many Australian smokers would ignore the visual warnings displayed on plain-packaged cigarettes by exchanging the more gruesome packets or moving their cigarettes into other, non-labelled containers so they can avoid having to see the harrowing health warnings.

Cigarette packets in Australia must showcase the horrifying, damaging and life-threatening effects that smoking has on the human body.

"I met lots of people who had blue eyes who would insist they return their packet (with a cigarette-affected blue eye held open on the front) and get a different packet," Dennis said.

"Men were very comfortable with ones relating to pregnancy so they felt that didn't affect them. There were lots of strategies (to combat the warning signs)."

More than 14 percent of Australian adults are still "daily smokers," though the figure is dropping; in 2011-12 the figure was 16 percent. Endit