The systematic review analyzed 28 studies examining the impact of tobacco taxes or prices on the affordability and consumption of tobacco products in WHO South-East Asia Region countries. The review included studies published in English without year limitations.

Systematic review

The authors declared no competing interests, financial or otherwise, related to the current work. They reported that the research was completed as part of the Tobacco Control Capacity program and was supported by UKRI Global Challenges Research Fund (MR/P027946/2).

Among the 28 studies, 12 reported an inverse association between price and consumption/affordability, while 11 reported no or positive association. Five studies had unclear interpretations. The majority of studies estimated that less affluent groups were more price-responsive compared to more affluent groups. Some studies indicated increased consumption of one product in response to price rises of another product, although findings were inconsistent. The review supports the use of tobacco tax and price measures as effective tools to address the tobacco epidemic, emphasizing the importance of increasing tobacco product taxes and prices sufficiently to outweigh the effects of income growth in order to reduce affordability and consumption.