Spain is set to undo its recent drop in smoking rates by heavily restricting safer alternatives, a new report has warned.
Last year, Ministry of Health statistics revealed an impressive 22 per cent decline in Spain’s daily smoking rates, which dropped from 33.1 per cent of the adult population in 2022 to 25.8 per cent in 2024.
At the same time, the Ministry also reported a 30 per cent increase in daily vaping rates over the same period, rising from one per cent of the adult population to 1.3 per cent. The number of Spaniards who had vaped in the previous 12 months almost doubled from 4.1 per cent to 7.1 per cent.
Heavy restrictions on vapes planned
However, new research from global health campaign Smoke Free Sweden warns Spain now risks reversing this progress by bringing in heavy restrictions on vapes and other nicotine alternatives.
Dr Delon Human, who authored the report, said: “Instead of accelerating smoking reduction like Sweden, Spain risks undermining its recent progress by removing the tools that could help more smokers quit. An opportunity for meaningful change is at risk of being lost.”
Spain has introduced an excise duty on e-liquids, nicotine pouches and similar smoke-free alternatives, making them less accessible – particularly for lower-income groups, who are most affected by smoking.
In addition, the Spanish government is currently preparing a Royal Decree that will introduce sweeping restrictions on these products.
The decree will ban all flavours in vapes and nicotine pouches except for tobacco, despite clear evidence that flavours help smokers transition away from combustible cigarettes.
Nicotine pouch strength limit
There is also a proposed nicotine cap of 0.99 mg per pouch – far lower than limits in most other European Union countries. Smoke Free Sweden says this move goes against evidence showing higher strengths are needed to help smokers quit.
A 2022 study by the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment recommended a limit of 16.6mg per pouch as a viable alternative to cigarettes.
Dr Human said: “These measures directly contradict Sweden’s strategy of making safer alternatives acceptable, accessible and affordable.”
Spain has struggled with some of the highest smoking rates in the world for many years.
Despite decades of traditional tobacco control measures, more than one in four Spanish adults still smoke combustible cigarettes. Tobacco-related diseases killed 45,137 Spaniards in 2021 alone.
Source: Smoke Free Sweden
Sweden’s successful approach
Spain presents a stark contrast to Sweden, which has more than halved its smoking rates in just over a decade by embracing snus, nicotine pouches and vapes for adult smokers.
As a result, Sweden now has the lowest smoking rate in the EU at 5.3 per cent – just one-fifth of Spain’s – and the lowest incidence of smoking-related disease in Europe.
“Research shows that 30,865 Spanish lives could have been saved if Spain had the same smoking-related mortality rates as Sweden from 2000 to 2019,” Dr Human said.
He added: “A recent increase in uptake of vapes in Spain has coincided with a notable reduction in cigarette smoking. However, rather than building on this progress of its own and learning from Sweden’s success, Spain is moving in the opposite direction.“The Spanish government is preparing to introduce a Royal Decree that will impose stringent restrictions on safer smoke-free alternatives – policies that could stall progress and deny Spanish smokers access to the very tools that have made Sweden a global leader in tobacco harm reduction.”
