Minister Memişoğlu: 2.5 Million of Turkey's 7.5 Million Aged 13-17 Smoke

Health Minister Kemal Memişoğlu said, in a speech at a program organized by the Turkish Parliamentarians Union, that 2.5 million of the 7.5 million children and young people aged 13-17 in Turkey smoke. This corresponds to 30 percent of the age group.

In the latest TÜİK survey today, the population of children and young people aged 13 to 17 in Turkey is 7.5 million. Of this 7.5 million, 2.5 million use cigarettes. So 30 percent of the population aged 13 to 17 smokes in this society right now. And the average age of starting to smoke in Turkey is 17. That is why we face a dramatic problem.

Health Minister Kemal Memişoğlu

Five core health problems

Memişoğlu said they had launched the Healthy Turkey Century program with the "Protecting, Developing and Producing Health" model. He listed Turkey's five core health problems as obesity, tobacco and bad habits, drugs, behavioral addictions and a low fertility rate. He stressed that obesity and tobacco use in particular must be tackled to protect public health.

Noting that tobacco use is a major public health problem, the minister said 8.5 billion packs of cigarettes were sold in Turkey in 2025 and that cash spent on cigarettes reached 15 billion dollars a year.

Memişoğlu also said that, thanks to family physicians' work, some people were diagnosed with cancer in the past year before any clinical symptoms appeared, underlining the importance of early diagnosis. He added that hospital appointments can be made through family physicians.