Clear warnings could deter smokers: Study

TOKYO - Light smokers and non-smokers pay more attention to health warnings on cigarette packs that lack branding graphics, supporting initiatives being considered by some nations to draw more attention to the warnings, a British study said.

But smokers were immune to the change in packaging, viewing equally the health warning and the product information, regardless of whether it was with plain or branded labeling.

"Repeated exposure to health warnings on cigarette packs might mean that daily smokers may be able to override the automatic tendency to focus more on these (warnings) on plain packs - in other words, ignore them," said Marcus Munafo, a professor at the University of Bristol and lead researcher on the small study, published in "Addiction".