Tobacco is the single largest cause of avoidable death in the European Union (EU)

Tobacco is the single largest cause of avoidable death in the European Union (EU) accounting for more than 650,000 deaths each year.
A further 13 million people in the EU suffer from serious diseases caused by smoking, such as cardiovascular disease (CVD) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). One in four (26%) of all deaths from cancer in the EU are caused by smoking, and smoking is responsible for 85% of lung cancer deaths across the EU.
Even those individuals who do not smoke are affected by smoking and tobacco. Passive smoking has been attributed to the deaths of 79,000 non-smoking Europeans each year as a result of exposure to second-hand smoke.
Despite these figures, almost a third (29%) of citizens across the EU currently smoke either cigarettes, cigars or a pipe1. Almost half of Europeans claim that they have never smoked, while the remainder state that they have given up smoking (22%).
The greatest proportion of smokers in the EU are found in southern Europe; particularly Bulgaria, Hungary and Greece. Conversely, in the northern member states like Sweden and Finland the proportion of smokers is the lowest at 16% and 21% respectively.
Socio-demographically, smokers are more likely to be male (35%) than female (25%), under 54 years of age and from lower social and economic groups1.

In terms of smoking cessation, the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark have the greatest proportion of ex-smokers at 33%, 31% and 31% respectively, followed by Finland, France and Germany, each with between 27% and 26%1. Everyday smoking is highest in Bulgaria, Romania, Italy, Austria, and Greece1.
The economic burden of smoking in the EU is significant. Smoking attributed costs for the two groups of smoking related diseases in Europe (COPD and CVD) amount to between €105.83 billion and €130.31 billion for the year 2000, equivalent to 1% of Europe’s GDP. The indirect costs of smoking account for two thirds of this amount.