Discourage tobacco cultivation

Tobacco use in any form is deadly. Smoking kills more than half of all regular users, and the smokers die on average of 15 years earlier than non-smokers. Tobacco farming was introduced to Bangladesh in the Teesta silt of the Rangpur region, where tobacco was cultivated on soil meant for growing food crops.

Since then, the cultivation of tobacco crops expanded into many more regions of Bangladesh, such as the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) and Kushtia. The lack of awareness about its adverse impact on soil fertility and the alleged lucrative offers from different tobacco companies are the main contributing factors behind this unwelcome phenomenon. It is believed that apart from interest free loans, freely available tobacco seeds, fertilisers and insecticides, tobacco companies also provide other technical support. Media reports suggest that they even turn up on the doorsteps of the farmers to purchase the produce giving fair price. Farmers are also attracted to tobacco cultivation as the low and uncertain price of rice has discouraged them from cultivating staple crops. Food and water crisis is going to be severe in areas where tobacco cultivation is expanding.

Tobacco farming is harmful to the environment and farm workers. Research on the environmental health impact of tobacco farming found that it degrades the environment, harms workers, and leads to the loss of land resources and biodiversity. Experts say that tobacco farming causes green tobacco sickness (GTS) in farm workers who absorb nicotine through the skin when handling wet tobacco. GTS causes muscle weakness, headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, abdominal cramps, breathing difficulty, diarrhoea, chills, fluctuations in blood pressure or heart rate, and increased perspiration and salivation. Tobacco plants are vulnerable to a variety of pests and diseases, which require the application of large quantities of chemicals which in turn harms the environment. Pesticide poisoning is common among people living near tobacco-growing fields. Exposure to these chemicals causes respiratory, neurological, and psychological problems. Women are worst affected by tobacco cultivation by having adverse health effects, particularly in relation to their reproductive health. Apart from soil degradation, tobacco farming can lead to destruction of ground water resources, sedimentation of rivers, reservoirs and irrigation systems, etc. Tobacco has been cultivated in Bangladesh for a long time. Expanding tobacco production in Bangladesh is displacing farming of traditional food crops, a practice that can lead to food insecurity. If a large group of farmers switch to tobacco cultivation, it might affect food grain production in Bangladesh.   When farmers cultivate tobacco December to March is the time for paddy and winter crop cultivation.

Arable land is on the decrease in Bangladesh. It will be a threat if the land is used for tobacco cultivation rather than the food cultivation. Bangladesh is losing 1 percent of arable land every year, in part due to erratic rains and land degradation, according to the UN World Food Programme. The manufacturing of tobacco products also produces an immense amount of waste. Annually the global tobacco industry produces an estimated 2.3 billion kilograms of manufacturing waste and 209 million kilograms of chemical waste. This does not include the enormous amount of litter caused by cigarette butts, which are not bio-degradable. According to one estimate, 954 million kilograms worth of filters are produced annually, with many of them eventually littering countries' streets, waterways and parklands.

Compounding the extent of this problem is the waste created by cigarette packaging, lighters, matches and other polluting by-products of tobacco use. The very fertile district of Kushtia (the second largest tobacco-producing district in the country) had been a food-surplus region. Today, tobacco occupies the best lands in the district, having displaced vegetables, pulses, sugar cane and jute crops.

In areas where fuel wood is already scarce, tobacco farmers use fodder, rice straw and fruit trees to cure tobacco. These practices may then affect food production resources (cooking fuel and food for milk cows) and overall food security.

In the ultimate analysis, tobacco farming is not that profitable as when farmers grow paddy and other crops, they do not have to buy food from markets. Though tobacco farmers earn more, they have to spend a lot buying food,

On the other hand the consumption of tobacco shows no signs of declining. The wide availability and use of tobacco are continuing in spite of irrefutable medical evidence about its health risk. Smoking is a health hazard and tobacco companies have been forced to put warning messages on smoke packets. Smoking is banned inside public buildings. Smoking is a proven hazard to health and is linked to over 40 diseases No doubt many people love to smoke tobacco and it is very possible that much of this is due to the stimulant received, the intoxication and the addictive property of nicotine. Time was when many people believed that smoking could protect them from illness. Also a nation can become 'addicted' to the revenues produced by taxes placed upon tobacco products. Tobacco has two distinct functions, one as a consumable article and the other as a revenue earner, which at times appears to secure conflicting official treatment.

Interestingly, the number of young female smokers in the country has been increasing rapidly in the recent years. Naturally, these women smokers are also going to face the same health issues due to tobacco usage as those being suffered by male smokers. Women and girls form an enticing market with large growth potential for the tobacco industry. 

Smoking , until a few years ago, used to be a widely accepted practice in Bangladeshi men and was associated with socialising, sharing, and male identity. Among women, smoking was associated with stigma and shame. Smoking in women is often hidden from family members. Peer pressure was an important influence on smoking behaviour in younger people, who tended to hide their smoking from elders.

There were varied and conflicting interpretations of how acceptable smoking is within the Muslim religion.

The use of tobacco in the form of Shisha or Hookah is gaining popularity among youngsters in urban areas of the country. It must be noted that according to health experts smoking Shisha for an hour is equal to smoking 100 cigarettes in the same time. Since Shisha also contains nicotine and tar, it can lead to lung cancer and heart attacks. It is really unfortunate that many people consider Shisha a non-hazardous leisurely activity. Majority of smokers realize the need to give up smoking but find it difficult to do so in the absence of any organized efforts to do so. Also there is no formal training of health care providers on smoking cessation. Smoking cessations medications, which can help motivated people in giving up this powerful addiction are rare to find in Bangladesh. 

The government in Bangladesh, to its credit, has certainly not remained idle against the looming health threat. Measures adopted by the government against smoking include banning smoking in public spaces, advertising bans, and graphic health warnings on cigarette packaging. More needs to be done. Patients, who suffered from tobacco related illnesses can claim heath care cost recovery from tobacco companies. Some selected lawyers should be provided training on tobacco litigation.

 Medical college curriculum should include tobacco control and smoking cessation strategies. Special workshops should be arranged for doctors for building their smoking cessations skills. Pharmaceutical companies should be asked to provide quit smoking medicines at affordable price.

The writer is Senior Assistant Editor at The Business Post