World No Tobacco Day is "Critically Important" for the Middle East

This year's World No Tobacco Day (May 31, 2007), the annual event sponsored by the World Health Organisation, is critically important for the Middle East region, according to health experts and legislators. The aim of the day is to increase awareness globally about the dangers of tobacco use, to encourage governments to strictly regulate tobacco products and to get individuals to quit tobacco use.

According to the World Health Organization, every eight seconds a person dies of a smoking-related disease. Deaths from cancer, heart attacks, lung diseases and complications of pregnancy caused by tobacco are set to double. Tobacco use currently kills five million a year and the death toll will rise to 10 million by the 2020s, unless urgent action is taken now.

One of the major areas of focus of the campaign in the Middle East will be sheesha or water-pipe smoking. With the introduction of fruit, honey and herb-flavoured tobacco, sheesha usage is increasing in popularity among young people, women, families, including children, and on college campuses.

Many assume it is safe because the smoke passes through water. However, serious lung disease, cancer (oral and bladder) and addiction are linked to water-pipe smoking. Women who use water-pipes during pregnancy face an increased risk of having babies with low birth weight.

The different forms of tobacco are all deadly. On World No Tobacco Day, the WHO plans to issue a call to governments to strictly regulate the manufacture, sale and use of all tobacco products - traditional, new, and even future.

The UAE is taking a lead in this area with the announcement that public departments in Dubai will become smoke-free from May 31, which coincides with World No Tobacco Day.

When smokers inhale a lit cigarette, nicotine within seconds reaches the brain and binds to a nicotinic receptor which activates the reward pathway in the brain's circuit. This creates a powerful sense of satisfaction. The initial effects recede quickly and a cycle of craving and withdrawal ensues.

Alami Consulting

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