Ciggie pack warnings not helping ward off potential smokers

Standardised cigarette packs are likelier to put teens off smoking than current front-of-pack health warnings, a new study has suggested.

According to the British Heart Foundation (BHF), teens from Australia - where plain packs were introduced last year - are likelier to be deterred from taking up smoking by cigarette packaging than British youngsters, Sky News reported.

The new research revealed that about 36 percent of UK teens are deterred from smoking by current cigarette packs as compared to about 48 percent of their Australian counterparts.

2,000 people aged 13 to 18 from the UK and 500 from Australia were surveyed and it was found that three out of four British teens would support such a measure.

The new research also found that 10 percent UK teens incorrectly believed that certain cigarette brands are healthier than others, compared to just 5 percent in Australia.