BizkaiaGipuzkoaArabaVitoria-GasteizLlanada AlavesaRioja AlavesaMontaña AlavesaValles AlavesesCantábrica AlavesaEstribaciones del GorbeaDonostialdeaBidasoaTolosaldeaGoierriUrola KostaDebagoienaDebabarrenaGran BilbaoDurangaldeaLea-ArtibaiBusturialdeaUribe KostaEnkarterriArratia-NerviónMungialdeaBizkaiaGipuzkoaArabaVitoria-GasteizLlanada AlavesaRioja AlavesaMontaña AlavesaValles AlavesesCantábrica AlavesaEstribaciones del GorbeaDonostialdeaBidasoaTolosaldeaGoierriUrola KostaDebagoienaDebabarrenaGran BilbaoDurangaldeaLea-ArtibaiBusturialdeaUribe KostaEnkarterriArratia-NerviónMungialdea
EU|ES|EN
Diario Euskadi logo

Diario Euskadi

Basque Government's New Anti-Smoking Campaign Targets Women Aged 40-70

The initiative by the Department of Health and Osakidetza aims to address gender disparities in accessing smoking cessation treatments.

Generic image: Diverse group of women aged 40-70 with a Basque Country landscape in the background.
IA

Generic image: Diverse group of women aged 40-70 with a Basque Country landscape in the background.

The Department of Health of the Basque Government and Osakidetza have launched a new prevention and awareness campaign against tobacco consumption in Bilbao, with a particular focus on women aged between 40 and 70.

This year, the primary focus of the campaign will be women aged 40 to 70. From a public health perspective, this group is a priority because, compared to men of the same age, they are less likely to initiate smoking cessation treatments. Guillermo Herrero, Director of Public Health and Addictions, and Sonia González, a community health nurse at Osakidetza, have highlighted the need to adapt public policies to the gender inequalities present in consumption.
They reiterated that "tobacco consumption is harmful in all its forms, and there is no safe mode of consumption, nor a safe level of exposure to tobacco, smoke, or aerosols. The substances they contain and emit are toxic and can cause serious health problems." The campaign's main slogan, "Go for it! If you want to quit smoking, we'll help you," conveys a clear message: quitting smoking is possible, and Osakidetza, the public health system, will offer support through appropriate resources.
The Basque Country has made significant progress in the fight against smoking. According to the latest addiction survey, 19.7% of the population aged 15-74 smoked daily, the lowest figure recorded to date. However, the decline is not uniform: while it is generalized among men, women of middle age do not show a similar trend. Of particular concern is the group of women aged 55-74, where daily consumption has increased from 3.8% to 15% between 2004 and 2023. Furthermore, women in this group less frequently seek treatment to quit.
Smoking is linked not only to physical dependence but also to emotional, social, and cultural factors. In women, these elements have a specific weight, with a greater association with stress, the burden of care, and emotional management, and it manifests in more private and solitary contexts. All of this reinforces the need for campaigns tailored to women's life experiences.
The consequences of smoking are appearing with greater intensity in women; between 2001 and 2020, the mortality rate attributable to tobacco among women increased by 98%, while among men it decreased by 29%. Among adolescents, although tobacco consumption has decreased (from 20% to 18%), the use of electronic cigarettes has seen a notable rise (from 13% to 20%).

Related News