World No Tobacco Day 2019: tobacco and lung health

The focus of World No Tobacco Day 2019 is on "tobacco and lung health." The campaign will increase awareness on: the negative impact that tobacco has on people’s lung health, from cancer to chronic respiratory disease, the fundamental role lungs play for the health and well-being of all people. The campaign also serves as a call to action, advocating for effective policies to reduce tobacco consumption and engaging stakeholders across multiple sectors in the fight for tobacco control.

Every year, on 31 May, WHO and global partners celebrate World No Tobacco Day (WNTD). In 2019, WNTD will focus on "tobacco and lung health". Tobacco smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke increase the risk of contracting many diseases. For instance, active and passive smoking affect the health of people’s lungs in multiple ways:

• Lung cancer: smoking is responsible for over two thirds of lung cancer deaths globally, and second-hand smoke increases the risk of developing lung cancer for non-smokers. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in most countries of the WHO European Region. Approximately 430 000 people died from lung cancer in the Region in 2018, and more than half a million new cases were diagnosed during that period. Quitting smoking reduces the risk of lung cancer: 10 years after quitting the risk falls to about half that of a smoker.

• Chronic respiratory diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma: tobacco smoking is the leading cause of COPD, a condition that results in a painful cough and agonizing breathing difficulties. It also exacerbates asthma, which restricts activity and contributes to disability. According to the latest available data, 3.6% of total deaths in the European Region were due to COPD in 2017. Early smoking cessation is the most effective way of slowing the progression of COPD and improving asthma symptoms.

Furthermore, children exposed to second-hand smoke are at higher risk of developing frequent lower-respiratory infections and have a higher risk of suffering the onset and exacerbation of asthma, pneumonia and bronchitis. The link between tobacco smoking and tuberculosis (TB) is also well established, showing that the chemical components of tobacco smoke can trigger latent infections of TB. Smoking can also increase the risk of disability and death from respiratory failure in people with active TB.

Implementing the FCTC to improve lung health:
The campaign for WNTD aims to increase awareness about the particular dangers of tobacco smoke to lung health and the fundamental role the lungs play in the health and well-being of all people. It also focuses on raising awareness of cost-effective and feasible actions that key audiences, including governments and the public, can take to reduce the risks to lung health posed by tobacco. These actions include tobacco control measures outlined in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) such as raising tobacco taxes, implementing smoke-free policies, supporting people to quit, raising awareness through mass media and enforcing bans on all forms of promotion. Full implementation of the WHO FCTC and other tobacco control measures will improve population health and well-being, and save lives.
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Controlling the Tobacco Epidemic among Women...

This fact file focuses on the harm that tobacco marketing and smoke do to women.

About 200 million of the world's one billion smokers are women. The tobacco industry aggressively targets women in order to increase its consumer base and to replace those consumers who quit or who die prematurely from cancer, heart attack, stroke, emphysema or other tobacco-related disease.
Girls and boys start using tobacco for different reasons, and tobacco use harms women and men differently.
Approximately 1.5 million women die every year from tobacco use. Understanding and controlling the tobacco epidemic among women is an important part of any tobacco control strategy.

Smoke Free

1. More women than men smoke "light" cigarettes: Marketing strategies lure consumers with misleading categories, such as "light" or "low tar". More women than men smoke "light" cigarettes (63% versus 46%), often in the mistaken belief that "light" means "safer". In fact, "light" smokers often engage in compensatory smoking, inhaling more deeply and more frequently to absorb the desired amount of nicotine. 
2. Tobacco use harms women differently from men: Women who smoke are more likely than those who do not to experience infertility and delays in conceiving. Smoking during pregnancy increases risks of premature delivery, stillbirth and newborn death, and may cause a reduction in breast milk. Smoking increases women's risk for cancer of the cervix. 
   
3. Women constitute 64% of deaths from second-hand smoke: Worldwide, second-hand smoke causes 430 000 adult deaths per year. Sixty-four per cent of these deaths occur in women. In some countries, second-hand smoke is a greater threat to women than the possibility that women might start using tobacco. More than 90% of the world's population is still not covered by comprehensive national smoke-free laws. 
4. People who smoke should avoid exposing the people with whom they live and work to second-hand smoke: Women and children often lack power to negotiate smoke-free spaces, including in their homes, in their workplaces and in other public spaces. Everyone, regardless of age or sex, should be protected from secondhand smoke. 
5. Controlling tobacco use among women is an important part of any tobacco control strategy: Tobacco prevention and cessation programmes should be integrated into maternal, child and reproductive health services. Warnings about the harmful effects of tobacco must take into account that illiteracy is higher among women than men, and should use clear pictures to ensure that those who cannot read are also able to understand the health risks of tobacco use.

Related Links :
World Health Organization - Department of Gender, Women and Health 
World No Tobacco Day 2013  

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