JEDDAH: Some six million smokers in Saudi Arabia puff away SR8 billion every year disregarding the dangerous effects of the habit on their health, according to a statistical report published on Sunday.

The report also said smoking-related diseases kill at least 33 people in the Kingdom each month.

As many as 13 billion cigarettes are imported to the Kingdom every year while each smoker goes through 2,000 cigarettes. About 10 percent of the Kingdom’s total smokers are women and 19.3 percent are teenagers, the report said.

Saudi Arabia ranked fourth in the world in terms of cigarette consumption. About 30 percent of Saudi youngsters aged between 13 and 15 years experimented with smoking while 11 percent of them continued the habit, the report said.

Studies have shown that 13 to 15 percent of youths live with smokers while 40 percent of them are exposed to smoking outside their homes.

As a result of smoking the number of cancer cases in the Kingdom is growing. At present there are 2,350 cases of lung cancer, including 1,741 Saudis (374 women), in the Kingdom. Smoking has also been identified as the main reason for many fires in the Kingdom.