Why should we prioritise smoking cessation for people with mental health conditions?

Smoking is the single largest cause of preventable death and responsible globally for 7.7 million deaths in 2019. This is due to increased risk of cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and blindness. Smoking is also associated with increased risk of developing mental health conditions (MHCs). In England, smoking accounted for 74 600 deaths in 2019 and 506 100 hospital admissions in 2019–2020.5 People with different types of MHCs are several times more likely to smoke than the general population, and are responsible for a large proportion of overall tobacco consumption, with one- third of cigarettes smoked by people with an MHC.7 People with MHCs therefore experience disproportionate levels of tobacco- associated harm, which is the single largest contributor to their 7–25- year reduced life expectancy, and smoking has wider social and economic impacts on this population.