A new report issued by the World Health Organisation says that tobacco could kill up to a billion people during the 21st century, especially due to rising cigarette sales in poor and middle income countries. The report was financed by Bloomberg Philanthropies and outlines six key action points for combating tobacco use, including raising cigarette taxes, banning smoking in public places, enforcing laws against giving or advertising tobacco to children, monitoring tobacco use, warning people about the dangers and offering free or inexpensive help to smokers trying to quit.
This report is the first to compile global data on how many smokers or tobacco chewers are present in each country, how much they pay in tobacco taxes and how effective anti-smoking measures have been. It found that poor and middle-income countries collect 5,000 times as much in tax revenue from tobacco as they do on anti-tobacco measures, and only 5% of the world has no-smoking laws, as found in New York or many EU countries.
Source: New York Times, 8 February 2008
Note on the WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic, 2008 - The MPOWER package
Dr Judith Mackay, Asian Consultancy on Tobacco Control and World Lung Foundation
In February 2008, WHO launched the first-ever comprehensive analysis of global tobacco use and control, a report funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies. The survey establishes a benchmark by which to measure future progress.
The report confirms that the global tobacco epidemic is one of the greatest public health threats of modern times; that the tobacco epidemic is entirely preventable; and that the means to curb the epidemic are clear and within reach. Yet no country in the world has reached the 'gold standard' highest rating for action taken.
The report looks at the current status of tobacco use and control in 179 countries, and comes up with alarming statistics:
- The epidemic is shifting toward the developing world
- Only 5% of populations are covered by comprehensive smoke-free laws
- About 95% of tobacco users don’t get help to quit
- Only five countries have comprehensive pack warnings
- Just 4% of populations are protected by complete bans on tobacco advertising, marketing and promotion
- Only four countries have tax rates greater than 75% of retail price
- Tobacco control funding is much less than for HIV/AIDS, yet kills far more
The key messages of the report are:
- Virtually every country needs to do more
- Countries are not alone in combating the tobacco industry
- WHO FCTC provides a global consensus
- MPOWER provides six proven strategies to drive down tobacco use
- The tobacco industry opposes MPOWER because it will work
- Tobacco hurts – not helps – national economies
- Smoking in public places is not a right… breathing is!
MPOWER stands for:
M Monitor - tobacco use and prevention policies
P Protect - people from tobacco smoke
O Offer - help to quit
W Warn - about the dangers
E Enforce - bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship
R Raise - taxes on tobacco
The solution is in our hands…
MPOWER can be accessed at: http://www.who.int/tobacco/en/