Aboriginal people smoke and chew tobacco. Tobacco smoking was introduced into Arnhem Land around 400 years ago by Indonesian fishermen.(23) Availability increased with European settlement, and tobacco was used by missionaries and squatters to win over and pacify the Aboriginal population.(24) Most tobacco which is smoked by Aboriginal people is in the form of manufactured cigarettes, although roll-your-own tobacco and pipe smoking are popular in some subgroups, particularly in the Northern Territory.(23)
Several surveys have shown that a greater proportion of the Aboriginal population smokes than among the rest of the population.(25) Research from the Northern Territory has estimated that 71% of Aboriginal males and 43% of Aboriginal females are smokers.(23) According to national data, 59% of Aboriginal males and 42% of Aboriginal females smoke.(25) These rates are much higher than the rate for the overall Australian population (see Table 1.1 above). Aborigines are also less likely to be ex-smokers than non-Aborigines, and the proportion of smokers is highest in the younger age-groups.(26)
Tobacco usage is not uniform between different Aboriginal communities: for example within the Northern Territory, Top End Aboriginals have almost twice the smoking rate of Katherine and Centre groups,(23) while chewing tobacco is far more popular among Katherine and Centre communities. Around one-quarter of the Northern Territory Aboriginal population chews tobacco.(23)
Chewing tobacco derived from the nicotine-containing plants Duboisia hopwoodii ('pituri') or other indigenous tobaccos from the Nicotiana genus has long been used among various population groups. Mixing the tobacco with a particular ash makes an alkali blend which enables rapid uptake of nicotine through the lining of the mouth.(24) There is evidence, at least in the case of pituri, that traditionally there were strict social controls on production, distribution and consumption of the drug.(24) Further, the native tobaccos were typically only seasonally available and in particular locations. It is not yet clear what impact the constant availability of tobacco for chewing will have on disease prevalence.(23) Chewing tobacco is far more widely used by women then men, and its use is more prevalent among older age groups for both sexes.(23) Among the Aboriginal populations of the Northern Territory, the tobacco chewed is chiefly in the form of loose smoking tobacco, although a quarter of those surveyed chewed the traditional nicotine-containing native plants. All chewers combined their tobacco with white ash made usually from the bark of a particular Eucalyptus tree.(23)
Aborigines are the least healthy sub-population in Australia, suffering higher mortality and hospitalisation rates than other groups, and having a decreased life expectancy. Tobacco smoking is a major contributor to death and disease rates among Aboriginal people.(26) See also Chapter 3, Sections 15 and 18.