More than two-thirds of people after the first cigarette become subsequently constant smokers. The study is published in the journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research, the details of the work are recounted by the Guardian.

Scientists from Queen Mary's University of London studied the data of eight surveys conducted over the past 18 years (the earliest of them dates back to 2000): three from the US and the UK, two from Australia and New Zealand. In total, researchers received data from 216,000 respondents.

It turned out that 60% of the respondents at least once tried cigarettes. 69% of those who started to smoke confessed that after the first time they gradually became full-fledged smokers.

One of the authors of the study, Professor Peter Hajjek is sure that the results of the polls show that measures to inform about the dangers of smoking make sense. Preventing tastings can significantly reduce the number of young people who risk becoming a regular smoker.