Less than 10 per cent of people in Australia smoke daily, while the use of e-cigarettes (vapes) tripled between 2019 and 2022–2023, survey results from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) show.

The National Drug Strategy Household Survey 2022–2023 includes information on more than 21,000 people in Australia aged 14 and over and their use of, and attitudes toward, tobacco, e-cigarettes, alcohol, and illicit drugs.

Tobacco smoking

“Smoking is the leading cause of preventable disease and death in Australia, so it’s encouraging that we continue to see a decrease in the use of tobacco by people in Australia,” said AIHW spokesperson Dr Gabrielle Phillips.

The proportion of people in Australia aged 14 and over who smoke daily has dropped by two-thirds from 24 per cent in 1991 to 8.3 per cent in 2022–2023. Meanwhile, the proportion who have never smoked continues to rise, up from 49 per cent in 1991 to 65 per cent in 2022–2023.

E-cigarettes and vaping

In 2022–2023, one in five (19.8 per cent) people aged 14 and over in Australia reported having used an e-cigarette at least once in their lifetime, up from 11.3 per cent in 2019.

Use of e-cigarettes also increased, from 2.5 per cent in 2019 to 7.0 per cent in 2022–2023.

Vaping was most common among people aged 18–‍24; use increased substantially between 2019 (5.3 per cent) and 2022–‍2023 (21 per cent). Half (49 per cent) of people aged 18­–24 reported having tried an e-cigarette in their lifetime.

Older age groups were the most likely to smoke tobacco in 2019 and 2022–2023, and the least likely to use e-cigarettes. Younger age groups were the most likely to use e-cigarettes, and less likely to smoke tobacco in 2019 and 2022–2023.

While the National Drug Strategy Household Survey collects a range of information on the use e-cigarettes, the survey results do not provide comprehensive evidence for or against the use of e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation tool, or as a gateway to tobacco smoking.

Alcohol

Alcohol remains the most commonly used drug in Australia: about three in four (77 per cent) Australians reporting they consumed alcohol in the previous 12 months.

“Despite updated guidelines to reduce alcohol-related harms, the proportion of people in Australia who drink alcohol at risky levels has not changed since 2019,” Dr Gabrielle Phillips said.

Around one in three people (31 per cent) drank alcohol in ways that put their health at risk in 2022–2023, similar to 2019 (32 per cent).

Males were more likely to drink at risky levels than females in 2022–2023 (39 per cent compared to 23 per cent).

The proportion of males drinking at risky levels has been on a long-term decline, from 50 per cent in 2007 to 39 per cent in 2022–‍2023. A similar trend occurred among females, but the change was much more gradual (from 27 per cent in 2007 to 23 per cent in 2022–‍2023).

Illicit drugs

In 2022–2023, around one in five (18 per cent or 3.9 million) people in Australia aged 14 and over recently (in the past 12 months) used a drug illicitly. Almost half (47 per cent or 10.2 million) having used one in their lifetime. 

Recent use of many illicit drugs in Australia remained stable between 2019 and 2022–2023, including cannabis and cocaine. However, this was not the case for all illicit drugs.

From 2019 to 2022–2023:

• Marijuana/cannabis remained stable at 11.5 per cent
• Cocaine remained relatively stable at 4.5 per cent
• Hallucinogens increased from 1.6 per cent to 2.4 per cent
• Ketamine increased from 0.9 per cent to 1.4 per cent
• Ecstasy decreased from 3.0 per cent to 2.1 per cent
• Non-medical use of pain-relievers and opioids decreased from 2.7 per cent to 2.2 per cent

Young people

“Males have historically been more likely to use illicit drugs than females; however, 2022–2023 was the first time since monitoring began that females aged 18–24 were as likely to use illicit drugs as males of the same age,” said Dr Gabrielle Phillips.

In 2022–2023, more than one in three (35 per cent) females aged 18–24 reported recent use of illicit drugs, up from around one in four (27 per cent) in 2019. Recent use among young males remained stable at 35 per cent in 2022–2023.

Between 2019 and 2022–2023, the use of cannabis (up from 20 per cent to 26 per cent) and cocaine (up from 8.0 per cent to 11.9 per cent) increased substantially among young females aged 18–24.

Similarly, risky alcohol consumption increased among females, narrowing the gap between young males and females.

Males aged 18–‍24 were much more likely to consume alcohol at risky levels (47 per cent) than females of the same age (35 per cent) in 2019. In 2022–2023, 45 per cent of males consumed alcohol at risky levels compared to 40 per cent of females, the smallest gap seen since 2001.

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