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'World No Tobacco Day' focuses on the heart of the problem

World No Tobacco day theme for 2018 is Tobacco breaks heart. Each year tobacco kills millions of addicts around the world. Picture courtesy Dr.Niranjan Prabhakar

Thu. 31 May 2018

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Every year the 31st of May is observed as the World No Tobacco Day around the world to educate people about the ill effects of tobacco and to help them kick the habit. The theme for this year is Tobacco breaks heart.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD), including stroke, are considered the world’s leading causes of death. Incidentally statistics show that tobacco use is the second leading cause of CVDs, after high blood pressure. In simple words tobacco affects the heart in more ways than you can imagine.

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that CVDs kill more people than any other cause of death worldwide, and tobacco use and second-hand smoke exposure contribute to approximately 17% of all cardiovascular deaths globally.

It is a known fact in the WHO European Region, that CVDs cause around half of all deaths. Of the 6 WHO regions, the highest overall prevalence for smoking in 2017 was estimated to be in the European Region, at nearly  28%.

In India the additional problem of a smokeless or chewable form of tobacco is a cause for concern. Posing a greater challenge in the control this menace.

Sadly, India features among the top four users of tobacco and this lethal substance is responsible for more than 1 in 10 fatalities globally. It's comes as no surprise that about 11.2 percent smokers worldwide are Indian.

A Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS-2) report shows that India is the second largest consumer of tobacco products with nealry 28 percent of the population addicted to it in any form. Of this, 10.7 percent smoke, and 21.4 percent use smokeless tobacco (SLT). Interestingly, of the 346 million SLT consumers globally, India alone has over 150 million consumers with a substantial increase across all age groups.

Senior Psychiatrist and De-addiction specialist Dr.Roshan Jain says "Many live under the myth that chewing gutka or smokeless tobacco is less harmful than smoking. Most are not aware that gutka is literally ‘a pinch of poison’ and an ingredient for severe ailments and slow death. Specialists especially oncologists say consumption of gutka is more harmful than any other form of tobacco."

Reflecting on the disastrous effects of SLT, Dr.Roshan adds that "Smokeless tobacco is more hazardous than smoking because the chewed mixture directly enters the system through the oral cavity. Whereas with smoking, only 20 percent of the harmful chemicals reach the lungs and 80 percent is exhaled."

According to him all is not lost with those addicted to tobacco. There is a solution. He believes that nicotine dependency is a difficult habit to overcome, but with help, it’s possible for a fresh start.

"Quitting tobacco may be the best decision of your life. If you don’t succeed at first, then revisit, review and rework the plan. Never quit on quitting " , he advices.

Offering solutions to this problem, Dr.Roshan lists out many practical tips on quitting this habit in his blog.( http://roshanjain.com/mind-blog/gutka-smokeless-tobacco-pinch-poison/)

 

 

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