ObjectivesAlthough the global COVID-19 pandemic has increased interest in research involving high-risk smokers, studies examining changed smoking behaviours, cessation intentions and associated psychological states among smokers are still scarce. This study aimed to systematically review the literature related to this subject.DesignA systematic review of published articles on cigarettes and COVID-19-related topicsData sourcesOur search was conducted in January 2021. We used the keywords COVID-19, cigarettes, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) and psychological factors in PubMed and ScienceDirect and found papers published between January and December 2020.Data selectionWe included articles in full text, written in English, and that surveyed adults. The topics included smoking behaviour, smoking cessation, psychological state of smokers and COVID-19-related topics.Data extraction and synthesisPapers of low quality, based on quality assessment, were excluded. Thirteen papers were related to smoking behaviour, nine papers were related to smoking cessation and four papers were related to psychological states of smokers.ResultsOwing to the COVID-19 lockdown, cigarette users were habituated to purchasing large quantities of cigarettes in advance. Additionally, cigarette-only users increased their attempts and willingness to quit smoking, compared with e-cigarette-only users.ConclusionsOwing to the COVID-19 outbreak, the intention to quit smoking was different among smokers, according to cigarette type (cigarette-only users, e-cigarette-only users and dual users). With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, policies and campaigns to increase smoking cessation intentions and attempts to quit smoking among smokers at high risk of COVID-19 should be implemented. Additionally, e-cigarette-only users with poor health-seeking behaviour require interventions to increase the intention to quit smoking.

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Background The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all aspects of human society, including education, culture, and the economy, and has also introduced changes in people’s health behaviors such as drinking alcohol, nutrition intake, and practicing healthy living. This study conducted qualitative research in the Korean context to examine the changes in the smoking behavior of smokers and secondhand smoke exposure of non-smokers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods Focus group interviews were conducted with 36 Korean participants (18 men and 18 women). The groups were composed of cigarette smokers, e-cigarette users, heated tobacco product users, and non-smokers. Results During the pandemic, it was found that there was an increase in the frequency of use, irrespective of the tobacco product, in users who refrained from social interaction and worked or studied from home. Users who continued to be socially active increased the amount used with each usage. Smokers showed a tendency to avoid smoking rooms and to smoke alone in places unoccupied by people. In addition, non-smokers’ exposure to secondhand smoke did not decrease, but since non-smokers used masks, they reported more relief from the risk of exposure to secondhand smoke than before. Conclusions Despite smokers being a high-risk group for COVID-19, the risk did not result in smoking cessation among smokers. Therefore, policies and educational campaigns to raise awareness about the dangers of smoking and to encourage smoking cessation are needed in the future.

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has affected all aspects of human society, including education, culture, and economy, and has also brought changes in health behaviors such as drinking alcohol, nutrition intake, and practicing healthy living. This study conducted a qualitative research in the Korean context to examine the changes in the smoking behavior of smokers and secondhand smoke exposure of non-smokers during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods Focus group interviews were conducted with 36 Korean participants (18 men and 18 women): groups were composed of cigarette smokers, e-cigarette users, heated tobacco products users, or non-smokers. ResultsDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, regardless tobacco products, in the case of users who were not participating in engaging in social interaction, such as working from home or online classes, the frequency of using increased, and for users who continued engaging in social interactions, the amount of using increased each time they used. Smokers showed a tendency to avoid smoking rooms and to smoke alone in places where there were no people. In addition, non-smokers’ exposure to secondhand smoke did not decrease, but since non-smokers used masks, they reported more relief about the risk of exposure to secondhand smoke than before.ConclusionsSmokers being a high-risk group for COVID-19 did not result in smoking cessation among smokers. Therefore, policy and educational campaigns to raise awareness about the dangers of smoking and to encourage smoking cessation are needed in the future.

Tobacco endgame is a focal point of discussion at both national and international levels. We aimed to describe efforts related to achieving the tobacco endgame in the Republic of Korea, an exemplar of a country with endgame aspirations, and compare them with the efforts of other nations. We reviewed the tobacco endgame efforts of three nations considered tobacco control leaders: New Zealand (NZ), Australia and Finland. The efforts/attempts of each country were described using an endgame strategy category. The tobacco control leaders had explicit goals to achieve a smoking prevalence of <5% before a target date and had legislation and research centres for tobacco control and/or endgame. NZ is implementing a mixture of conventional and innovative endgame interventions; the others use incremental conventional approaches. In Korea, there has been an attempt to ban the sale and manufacture of combustible cigarettes. The attempt led to the filing of a petition, and a survey of adults showed 70% supported the legislation banning tobacco. The Korean government mentioned a tobacco endgame in a 2019 plan, yet a target and an end date were absent. The 2019 plan in Korea included incremental FCTC strategies. Practices in the leading countries show that legislation and research are key to ending the tobacco epidemic. The MPOWER measures must be strengthened, endgame objectives must be set and bold strategies must be adopted. Key endgame policies include those with evidence of effectiveness, such as retailer reductions.