The rate of smoking among teenagers in Cyprus aged between 15 and 16 was 14 per cent while as many as one in five students smoked shisha in the last month.
This is what a survey carried out last month and presented on Monday by the head of the national addiction authority, Dr Christos Minas, shows.
The survey also showed that 4.5 per cent of students use e-cigarettes daily and that four out of 10 adults had smoked a tobacco product in the last month.
Moreover, one out of 10 adults said they smoked more than 20 cigarettes in a day.
At the same time, Dr Minas also presented the launch of a European initiative for the collection of signatures aiming towards a smoke-free environment and a smoke-free generation by 2030.
He then invited Cypriots to participate and contribute to policymaking on this crucial issue.
He sent the message that smoking is the number one public health hazard worldwide, with annual deaths in Europe amounting to around 700,000.
This is the incentive behind the European campaign for a smoke-free environment, in which Cyprus also participates.
