Reasons to decrease or stop nicotine and tobacco use among adults and association with MPOWER scores in twenty-one middle- and high-income countries, 2019–2020

INTRODUCTION: This study examined reasons why people planned to reduce or stop tobacco consumption and their relationship with MPOWER scores, adjusting for sociodemographic, cultural, and economic factors. METHODS: Data used were Euromonitor International’s Voice of the Consumer: Nicotine Survey 2019–2020, World Bank’s country income and WHO’s MPOWER policy scores. Analytical sample included 21913 adults of legal smoking age in 21 middle- and high-income countries who used nicotine and tobacco products and planned to reduce or stop their consumption in the next 12 months. Poisson regression models with robust error variance, adjusted for sociodemographic and tobacco use covariables, generated adjusted risk ratios (ARRs) of selecting a certain reason to reduce tobacco consumption dependent on continuous MPOWER scores. RESULTS: Main reasons to reduce or stop tobacco consumption were improving health (85%), saving money (65%), pressure from family (19%), and using another substance instead (4%). Country variation was observed by MPOWER scores. Positive associations were found between some MPOWER scores and reasons to reduce or stop tobacco consumption: enforcing bans on tobacco advertising and using another substance (ARR=1.28; 95% CI: 1.11–1.47); warning about dangers of tobacco and saving money (ARR=1.25; 95% CI: 1.19–1.32); offering help to quit tobacco and using another substance (ARR=1.26; 95% CI: 1.10–1.45) or family pressure (ARR=1.11; 95% CI: 1.04–1.17); anti-tobacco campaigns and using another substance (ARR=1.15; 95% CI: 1.08–1.23); and raising taxes and saving money (ARR=1.11; 95% CI: 1.09–1.13). CONCLUSIONS: MPOWER scores are associated with reported reasons to quit tobacco including to improve health, save money, respond to family pressure or use another substance instead.