A seven-year-old boy who has been addicted to cigarettes since he was just three now smokes 16 sticks daily - after cutting down from three packets a day.

Dihan Awalidan, from West Java in Indonesia, is just one of the handful of young boys in the small village of Cicapar who reject more traditional playtime pursuits in favour of a smoke, Mirror Online repoted.

According to Metro.co.uk reports, his mates Nawan, 11, Jujun, seven and Dede, eight, are also addicted to cigarettes and the crew often light up 16 times a day.

Dihan manages to afford the habit by using his pocket money but sometimes he’ll steal coins from his long suffering mother’s purse.

‘If Dihan doesn’t smoke he cries. Now he smokes secretly, not openly as he used to,’ his mother Tati, 32, said.

His father Iyan, 36, is also upset and added: ‘If he was not given cigarette money he would get angry or steal cigarettes.’

There could be some light at the end of the tunnel though after Dihan agreed to cut down on his habit, although he refused to give up entirely.

His lips have already turned black so hopefully he quits before they drop off completely.

 More than 61 million people in Indonesia smoke and two thirds of the male population are hooked on the habit.