May 31 - World No Tobacco Day

All forms of tobacco use are harmful to health and there is no harmless dose of tobacco. The most common form of tobacco use in the world is cigarette smoking. Other types of tobacco products include hookah tobacco, cigars, rolled tobacco, products based on heated tobacco, which are also toxic and contain carcinogens. Heating tobacco or activating a device containing tobacco generates aerosols containing nicotine and toxic chemicals that are inhaled by the smoker and cause extreme addiction and negative effects. Electronic cigarettes are especially dangerous for children and teenagers. The circulating advertisements for these products are misleading with false claims of no harm to health as a smoking cessation aid.

Tobacco use is the most preventable cause of disease and death. In addition to harming health, tobacco use has huge economic costs in terms of health care, lost productivity, fire damage, and environmental damage. The strategies of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control aim to reduce tobacco use and related diseases. The provisions set out in the convention include:

– Increasing taxes on tobacco products;

– prohibition of smoking in public places;

– restriction of advertising of tobacco products;

– prohibition of sale to minors;

- warning the public about the dangers of tobacco use;

– assistance to tobacco users in quitting smoking;

- Offering alternative income options for tobacco producers.

The main goal of preventing the harmful effects of smoking on the body is to completely stop smoking. Therefore, every year on May 31, WHO celebrates World No Tobacco Day and every year defines its new motto. World No Tobacco Day 2023 is celebrated under the slogan: "We need food, not tobacco." Tobacco cultivation is resource intensive and requires heavy use of pesticides and fertilizers that contribute to soil degradation. Land used to grow tobacco has less ability to grow other crops because tobacco depletes soil fertility. Compared to other agricultural activities, tobacco growing has a much more destructive impact on ecosystems, as tobacco growing lands are more prone to desertification. The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control calls for the promotion of economically viable alternatives for tobacco workers, manufacturers and individual sellers, and for increased protection of the environment and human health. Tobacco cultivation and production cause long-term global damage to the environment and climate change and play an important role in determining the future of agriculture and food security.

In order to implement the provisions of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the state program "Health of the people and demographic security" for 2021-2025, the prevention of diseases causally associated with tobacco smoking, from May 29 to June 22, 2023, a republican informational and educational action "Belarus against tobacco".

The anti-tobacco action of the Republic of Belarus is aimed at informing the population about the detrimental health consequences of tobacco consumption and exposure to tobacco smoke, the formation of sustainable measures in civil society aimed at combating tobacco consumption. Tobacco prevention in our country is carried out:

- with the involvement of representatives of healthcare organizations, educational, cultural, sports and tourism institutions, law enforcement agencies, public organizations;

– by holding open information days;

- by consulting the population in healthcare institutions, education and enterprises, by the media.

The implementation of tough tobacco control influences public opinion. Monitoring the problem of smoking is critical to informing the public. Protecting children from the negative effects of secondhand smoke is a key imperative. Tobacco use is being denormalized by increasing its social unacceptability. Measures taken in the framework of the fight against smoking by the Republic of Belarus:

  – requirements for the packaging of tobacco and nicotine-containing products;

– prohibition of advertising and sponsorship by tobacco manufacturers of mass entertainment events;

– restriction of sale, including through vending machines, as well as public display of tobacco products;

– creation of smoke-free outdoor areas (school grounds, sports stadiums, parks, beaches);

– educating families about ways to reduce indoor air pollution associated with smoking, which puts children at risk;

– protecting public health policy from the commercial and other interests of the tobacco industry;

– adoption of price and tax measures to reduce the demand for tobacco;

– regulation of the composition of tobacco products;

– helping people prevent their addiction to tobacco;

– control of illicit trade in tobacco products;

- Ban on the sale of tobacco products to minors.

These measures are yielding results, and in recent years there has been a steady decline in tobacco consumption. However, a lot depends on each specific person, his desire for health and giving up bad habits, including the consumption of tobacco and nicotine-containing products.

May 31 is a great start for maintaining and strengthening health in a new life without tobacco.

Наглядные материалы (листовки, буклеты):

• Листовка о местах, где курение запрещено;
• Буклет «Электронные сигареты»;
• Листовка «Бросай курить»;
• Листовка «Сигареты женскими не бывают»;
• Листовка «Каждая сигарета убивает тебя»;
• Плакат «Отравление планеты»;
• Листовка «Сохрани свою жизнь».