Say no to Tobacco
News Kashmir Analysis
Tobacco is a monster adversely hitting our society. Throughout world and also in our country India it poses a grim challenge. Rampant Tobacco use is also a challenge for Jammu and Kashmir region.
Recently This yearly celebration informs the public on the dangers of using tobacco, the business practices of tobacco companies, what WHO is doing to fight the tobacco epidemic, and what people around the world can do to claim their right to health and healthy living and to protect future generations.
The Member States of the World Health Organization created World No Tobacco Day in 1987 to draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and the preventable death and disease it causes. In 1987, the World Health Assembly passed Resolution WHA40.38, calling for 7 April 1988 to be a “a world no-smoking day.” In 1988, Resolution WHA42.19 was passed, calling for the celebration of World No Tobacco Day, every year on 31 May.
The data points out serious issues we are seeing on front of Tobacco use in Kashmir.
About 32 percent men and one percent women consume tobacco in Jammu and Kashmir with cigarettes being the main tobacco product, NHFS-5 data revealed.
Official data available showed that only 1 percent of women in the age 15-49 group use some form of tobacco.
“Tobacco products mostly used by men are cigarettes (27%), bidis (4%), hookah and cigars or pipe (2% each). Among women and men, the use of any form of tobacco is slightly higher in rural areas (1.4% for women and 35% for men) than in urban areas (0.7% for women and 24% for men),” the data adds. “Over one-third (35%) of men who smoke cigarettes smoked 5 to 9 cigarettes in the past 24 hours.”
The data observed around 0.2 percent women in urban areas and 0.5 in rural areas use cigarettes while 21.1 men in urban areas and 28.7 percent in rural areas smoke cigarettes.
We need to bear in mind that There are 267 million tobacco users in India, making it the country with the second largest number of tobacco users in the world (behind China).
Approximately 100 million people ages 15 and older currently smoke tobacco (cigarettes and bidis).
Approximately 200 million people ages 15 and older use smokeless tobacco.
Tobacco use is higher in rural areas, among those with a lower socioeconomic status, and among those with lower levels of education.
Tobacco use prevalence is also significantly higher among men (42.4%) versus women (14.2%).
Despite increased awareness campaigns and stringent regulations, tobacco use continues to impact the youth in various ways, leading to both immediate and long-term consequences.
The pulse on ground zero in Kashmir, Country and world is that steps should be taken to end use of tobacco.
