Smokefree generation: The voices of Pacific youth in Ōtautahi.

30 Aug

We have been delivering health and social services to the Pasifika community in Christchurch for over 21 years and have recently created a video that shared the opinions of Pacific youth in Ōtautahi on vaping, smoking and the vision of a Smokefree 2025.

We submitted the video alongside a submission to the SmokeFree Environments and Regulated Products (Smoked Tobacco) Amendment BIll.

This submission shares what they told us.

You can watch the video here and read our submission below.

Setting the scene

Pacific peoples living in Aotearoa experience poorer health outcomes and lower life expectancy compared to the non-Pacific population. In addition, Pacific peoples in Aotearoa have one of the highest rates of smoking for adults and youth with the rate for regular smoking within the Pacific community being 20.2%, nearly twice the percentage for New Zealand Europeans.

Our population is youthful, with a median age of 24.3 years compared to New Zealand Europeans who have a median age of 41.4 years.

Our Pasifika youth are likely to start smoking at a young age - the average age for this is 16.6 years. Differences in smoking statistics for Pacific adolescent youth compared to non-Pacific adolescent youth can be explained by socioeconomic status, exposure to second-hand smoke in homes, parental smoking, peer smoking, and other risk factors.

Youth voices: Financial impact

We know that a lot of Pacific aiga are doing it tough financially. According to the 2018 census, Pacific peoples in Aotearoa have a median income of $24,3007 compared to New Zealand Europeans who have a median income of $34,1008.

Alongside having a lower median income, Pacific peoples are more likely to live in low socio-economic areas9 where there is more than three times the number of tobacco retailers located, compared to high socio-economic areas10.

Pasifika youth told us that the financial burden of tobacco and vaping products causes unnecessary stresses on aiga and personal finances:

“They spent way too much money on like buying smokes and stuff when they could have done something better with the money.”
Chris Tagilima
“The reason why I stopped, I did feel like I was starting to buy or spend money that I didn’t have, at the time as a student on cigarettes.”
Wikitoria Kurene
“It’s like, quite expensive and I think it puts a strain on the financial side of stuff.”
Blessing Bure
“I think it’s really sad to see how much money has been spent in that space, especially when we may not have the means to do that.”
Wikitoria Kurene

Prolonged health, economic and social deprivation for Pacific peoples in Aotearoa will be exacerbated if the sales and accessibility of tobacco and vaping products proceed in low socio-economic areas where Pacific communities are targeted.

Youth voices: Addiction

Our youth talked about addiction and how they have noticed their peers regret ever starting:

“There’s no benefit to smoking or vaping, it leads to addiction, it’s a gateway to other drugs.”
Mercy Paulo
“The constant justifying of ‘no I need it for this’ or ‘no I need it for that’ to get me through the next few days is quite hard to hear.”
Wikitoria Kurene
“Some people, when they can’t find the vape they get all pissed and angry.”
Mercy Paulo
“Some of my family, I’ve seen them try to get off smoking, but it’s hard.”
Blessing Bure

Youth voices: Health issues

Pasifika youth talked about their own experiences of smoking and vaping and the negative impacts this can have on their health:

“You see everyone at a young age vaping. It’s becoming real bad. It’s not good for their health and their lungs.”
Chris Tagilima
“I did start to feel like the impact on my own health started to impact the things that I used to enjoy...I used to play sport quite a lot and I noticed that when
I went to go and play some social sports that I found it really hard to breathe properly...I do regret trying it”
Wikitoria Kurene
“It didn’t help me at all with my league, I wasn’t a good influence on my siblings. It was ruining my life”.
Eli Bijl-Kakoi

Smoking not only caused personal health issues for our Pacific youth, but it also caused issues for aiga and community. The trauma of losing aiga and community members to cancers that have developed from a history of smoking was raised by the youth:

“My grandad passed away from lung cancer not too long ago. That was pretty sad for our family. Most of my family has asthma as well, smoking around them probably wouldn’t be good.”
Eli Bijl-Kakoi
“I have had family members who have developed cancer and different problems
with their lungs, and just health in general, from smoking throughout their life.”
Wikitoria Kurene

If you were the Minster of Health…

We asked Pasifika youth what they would do about smoking and vaping if they were the Minister of Health. They were unanimous in their call for greater restrictions to reduce its accessibility:

“There’s no good that comes from smoking or even vaping... I feel like I’d get rid of it altogether.”
Wikitoria Kurene
“Smoking and vaping is a lot more prevalent in our youth in that society, I feel like there should be like harder restrictions because I feel like youth are still getting their hands on it, even though they’re underage and all that so I would review what restrictions they have on getting it.”
Blessing Bure
“I would make smoking and vaping and smoking illegal to those under 18.”
Olive Tuipulotu
“It’s not good for our country, our people, it’s killing us.”
Jileo Taunoa

It was also pointed out that reducing smoking prevalence could free up precious health resources which could be used elsewhere in the health system:

“I feel like in the public health care system, like there’ll be less like lung cancer and stuff like that to have to deal with because of smoking, and vaping.”
Olive Tuipulotu

Views on a Smokefree Aotearoa

Our Pasifika youth threw their support behind the vision of a Smokefree Aotearoa:

“I think it’s a great idea, the way they want to slowly phase out who can buy cigarettes and vapes in New Zealand I think that’ll make for a lot healthier population.”
Olive Tuipulotu
“I think it’s good for our society as a whole.”
Blessing Bure
“It’d be beautiful, I think a Smokefree Aotearoa.”
Wikitoria Kurene
“Probably one of the dreams for Aotearoa.”
Mercy Paulo

Thank you!

Thank you for taking the time to hear the views of some Pacific youth in Ōtautahi on this issue – we hope you find their perspective illuminating and their voice propels you to do the right thing and protect future generations from the harm and suffering that smoking and vaping creates.

Eboni Hill