No to tobacco: ‘Survey findings a story of govt’s tobacco control failure’

Activists protest against decision to extend deadline for manufacturers to implement new pictorial warning guidelines

Anti-tobacco activists have protested against what they said the federal health ministry’s decision to extend deadline for tobacco industry to raise the size of pictorial health warning on cigarette packs to 85 per cent.

They have also called upon the government to go for plain packaging and sign the WHO’s Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products, said a press release issued by TheNetwork for Consumer Protection on Saturday.

The activists gathered outside the National Press Club in connection with the World No-Tobacco Day, which is being observed today (Sunday).

“Seemingly under pressure from tobacco industry, the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination (NHSRC) has twice delayed the implementation of increased size of pictorial health warning,” read the PR.

“The recent Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) says that 77.5 per cent of smokers noticed health warnings on cigarette packages and 29.7 per cent of current smokers thought about quitting after seeing the warnings.”

Participants of the gathering urged the government to accelerate its efforts to enforce all tobacco control measures as enunciated in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

They held placards, banners and pamphlets drawing public’s as well as the authorities’ attention towards health risks associated with tobacco use. They urged the government to introduce effective policies to reduce tobacco consumption.

TheNetwork Executive Coordinator Nadeem Iqbal said that according to GATS report launched on May 28, almost every 9 out of 10 adults consider smoking injurious to health but still 29 percent smokers in Pakistan start smoking before the age of 17 years. “This shows that smoking is not an awareness issue but a case of government failure in implementing the existing laws and strengthening their enforcement,” he said.

Iqbal said tobacco was also causing malnutrition in many families as on an average, a current smoker spent Rs767 per month on manufactured cigarettes. “This amount is equal to 40-kg wheat flour bag.”

Tobacco a gateway addiction

Shifa International Hospital also organised a seminar and an art competition among students to raise awareness of ill effect of tobacco smoking on Saturday.

Dr Raza Shah said e-smoking can help smokers who find it difficult to quit.  “It’s easier to quit when your daily intake is less than 10 cigarettes. Beyond that, it becomes very difficult to quit” he said.

Quoting surveys, Dr Sohail Naseem, consultant pulmonologist at the hospital, said that one person dies of smoke induced complications in every 6.5 second all over the world. “Out of 1.3 billion smokers, 80 percent are from developing countries. The number is expected to rise to 1.7 billion by 2020,” Naseem said.

He said almost 50 per cent Pakistani men are addicted to smoking. “This results in a significant part of the household income, around 25 per cent, being spent to maintain the habit. Pakistan is losing Rs562 million in cigarette smoking every day,” he said and added that 90 per cent deaths associated with lung disease are caused by smoking. He said sheesha was more harmful than cigarette smoking.

Dr Abudl Wahab, a physiologist, said that a lot of cognitive disorders begin as a result of smoking. He said tobacco was a “gateway drug” as nicotine fulfilled all criteria of addiction. “Neurological effects of nicotine are similar to what a person feels while consuming drugs,” he said.

Dr Wahab said 90 per cent smokers start smoking at the age of 18, “therefore, we need to target the youth because smoking is a gateway to other addictions”.

School students participating in the art competition prepared over a hundred paintings showcasing smoking as a lethal habit. The artworks were put on display and the winners awarded with prizes.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2015.