Numbers up in smoke
Corio-Norlane having trouble with butting out
CORIO-NORLANE has the highest number of smokers per health area in Victoria, according to survey data.
While the rate of teen smokers is on the decline across the country, experts have blamed “social circles” for older residents struggling to kick the habit.
The Health Tracker data, provided by Quit Victoria, showed 29.5 per cent of Corio and Norlane respondents listed themselves as current smokers in the 2014-15 National Health Survey.
Melbourne had the state’s lowest rate at 7.8 per cent.
Quit Victoria director Dr Sarah White said quitting was contagious and that areas such as Corio, Norlane and Frankston North, which had the second highest number of smokers at 27 per cent, had struggled to break the cycle.
“Where we have pockets where there’s been a real identity with smoking, where smoking has been permitted, with manufacturing or industries where you can walk outside for your smoko, it becomes culturally the norm where that form of quitting contagion hasn’t taken hold,” she said.
“It’s also about recognising the benefit to the community.
“In fact, it’s not just about setting a good example for kids, it can have a significant benefit in micro economies. If you’re spending $5000-$9000 a year on cigarettes, imagine if that money was instead being spent in a local Norlane or Corio business?” But the data wasn’t all bad. A separate report, released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, showed the amount of teenagers who have never smoked rose from 95 per cent in 2013 to 98 per cent in 2016, according to the 2016 National Drug Strategy Household Survey.
Northern Bay P-12 College principal Fred Clarke said feedback from students and teachers showed the messaging around smoking health risks was getting through.
“We suspend any student caught smoking and I’ve noticed a significant reduction. Smoking at school is now a rare occurrence . . . it’s probably dropped off in the last 18 months,” he said.
He said one of the school’s proactive measures to monitor student behaviour was an annual survey in which Year 6, 8 and 10 students are asked about risk factors such as drugs and alcohol, and their relationships with peers and family.
“It gives us a benchmark so we’re not guessing,” he said.