No Tobacco Day aims at rising number of women who smoke
Source: Agencies |
June 1, 2010, Tuesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
WORLD No Tobacco Day yesterday aimed at women and girl smokers with posters warning: "Chic? No, throat cancer," as health officials said tobacco firms were targeting young women.
The World Health Organisation theme for the global anti-smoking day was "gender and tobacco" and the harmful effects of tobacco marketing and smoking on women and girls.
WHO said tobacco firms are spending heavily on alluring marketing campaigns targeting women as they gain spending power and independence, particularly in Asia's booming economies.
It is estimated that more than 8 percent of girls between 13 and 15, or around 4.7 million, are using tobacco products in the Asia-Pacific region, the WHO said.
Indian doctors said there had been a considerable increase in women smoking, especially among young college students, attributing the rise to stress, peer pressure and high disposable incomes.
"It's a cause of concern that literate women in sectors like business, medicine ... college girls from the higher strata of the society are getting addicted to the habit," Dr Pradyut Waghre at Apollo Hospitals told The Times of India newspaper.
Tobacco is the second major cause of death in the world, currently responsible for the death of one in 10 adults worldwide, or about 5 million deaths each year, said the WHO. Women make up about 20 percent of the world's 1 billion smokers, but if current tobacco usage continues smoking will kill 8 million people a year by 2030 - 2.5 million of them women.
Each day 3,000 people die from tobacco use in Asia-Pacific, with smoking and chewing tobacco among women and girls on the rise, said Dr Shin Young-soo, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific.
"Starting early results in addiction that later translates to a life of nicotine dependence, poor health and premature death," said Shin.
The WHO is calling for comprehensive bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship to protect women and girls from images that portray smoking as glamorous or fashionable. Only half of the nations in the Asia-Pacific have bans on tobacco advertising.
India's Waghre said there was an increase in lung cancer among women in India, which was not there in the last decade, due to not only direct but also passive smoking. Close to half of all women in the Asia-Pacific are exposed to second-hand smoke in their homes or in the workplace, often due to cultural and social norms, which can lead to cause lung cancer, heart disease and respiratory conditions, said WHO.
A study in Shanghai of 72,000 non-smoking women found that exposure to their husbands' smoking increased their risks of dying from lung cancer and heart disease by almost 40 percent. The women also had a nearly 50 percent higher risk of stroke.
The World Health Organisation theme for the global anti-smoking day was "gender and tobacco" and the harmful effects of tobacco marketing and smoking on women and girls.
WHO said tobacco firms are spending heavily on alluring marketing campaigns targeting women as they gain spending power and independence, particularly in Asia's booming economies.
It is estimated that more than 8 percent of girls between 13 and 15, or around 4.7 million, are using tobacco products in the Asia-Pacific region, the WHO said.
Indian doctors said there had been a considerable increase in women smoking, especially among young college students, attributing the rise to stress, peer pressure and high disposable incomes.
"It's a cause of concern that literate women in sectors like business, medicine ... college girls from the higher strata of the society are getting addicted to the habit," Dr Pradyut Waghre at Apollo Hospitals told The Times of India newspaper.
Tobacco is the second major cause of death in the world, currently responsible for the death of one in 10 adults worldwide, or about 5 million deaths each year, said the WHO. Women make up about 20 percent of the world's 1 billion smokers, but if current tobacco usage continues smoking will kill 8 million people a year by 2030 - 2.5 million of them women.
Each day 3,000 people die from tobacco use in Asia-Pacific, with smoking and chewing tobacco among women and girls on the rise, said Dr Shin Young-soo, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific.
"Starting early results in addiction that later translates to a life of nicotine dependence, poor health and premature death," said Shin.
The WHO is calling for comprehensive bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship to protect women and girls from images that portray smoking as glamorous or fashionable. Only half of the nations in the Asia-Pacific have bans on tobacco advertising.
India's Waghre said there was an increase in lung cancer among women in India, which was not there in the last decade, due to not only direct but also passive smoking. Close to half of all women in the Asia-Pacific are exposed to second-hand smoke in their homes or in the workplace, often due to cultural and social norms, which can lead to cause lung cancer, heart disease and respiratory conditions, said WHO.
A study in Shanghai of 72,000 non-smoking women found that exposure to their husbands' smoking increased their risks of dying from lung cancer and heart disease by almost 40 percent. The women also had a nearly 50 percent higher risk of stroke.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
