India witnessed a drastic decline in tobacco smoking over the past decade: WHO

  • May 31 is celebrated as theĀ World No Tobacco Day.
  • The percentage ofĀ tobaccoĀ smokers in India has witnessed a sharp drop since 2000.
  • According toĀ WHOĀ most people do not know the cardiovascular risks involved with smoking tobacco.

On World No Tobacco Day, May 31st, theĀ World Health OrganisationĀ (WHO) released aĀ reportĀ on global trends in tobacco usage. According to the report, the percentage of smokers in India dropped from 19.4% in 2000 to 11.5% in 2005.

The same report projects that the percentage of tobacco smokers in India will further drop to 9.8% by 2020 and 8.5% by 2025.

Globally, the percentage of smokers in the age group of 15 or more has dropped to 20.2% from 26.9% in 2000.

The decrease in the percentage of tobacco smokers in India and other low and middle countries was due to the implementation of tobacco control policies likeĀ ā€œCigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act of Indiaā€. These policies basically prohibit the advertisement of tobacco products and regulate the supply and distribution of cigarettes and other tobacco products.

Although the percentage of tobacco smokers in India is going down, itā€™s too early to rejoice as the country still has one of the largest tobacco smoking and chewing populations in the world.

The report also revealed that most of the worldā€™s tobacco consumers did not know about the cardiovascular risks of smoking tobacco. Therefore this World Tobacco day, the WHO is drawing the world’s attention to theĀ cardiovascular risks of tobacco.

According to a report inĀ The Hindu, the WHOā€™s Director-General said, ā€œMost people know that using tobacco causes cancer and lung disease, but many people are not aware that it also causes heart disease and stroke ā€” the worldā€™s leading killers.ā€

Source: Business Insider

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