Strictly enforce anti-tobacco laws

Tobacco use in any form is deadly. Smoking kills more than half of all regular users, and smokers die an average of 15 years earlier than non-smokers. The country witnesses around 444 tobacco-related deaths each day as 35.3 per cent of people aged between 15 years old and above use tobacco products.

Smokeless tobacco causes oral cancer and might be a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, bidis increase the risk for oral, lung, and oesophageal cancers while water-pipe smoking increases the risk for oral and lip cancer and obstructive lung disease.

The wide availability and use of tobacco are continuing despite 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 much of this may be due to the stimulant received, the intoxication and the addictive property of nicotine.

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 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.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has declared a target to make Bangladesh tobacco-free by 2040. 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.

A revised tobacco control law has been submitted to the Cabinet Division following the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, they said, adding that, this commitment by the government is an important step towards improving public health in Bangladesh.

Unfortunately though, anti-smoking laws have largely proved ineffective and failed to create a visible impact on the users of tobacco.

Patients, who suffered from tobacco-related illnesses, can claim health care cost recovery from tobacco companies. Some selected lawyers should be provided training on tobacco litigation.

Tobacco burners are part and parcel of society, and they could not be eliminated completely, however, an effective public awareness campaign could help to reduce the number of tobacco users.

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

The power of the tobacco lobby globally is considerable as is the peer pressure that leads many young people to become hooked for life.

Fool proof laws and stringent enforcement are needed in every country to stamp out the practice. Raising taxes and therefore making these products discouragingly expensive is the most obvious route, in addition to the measures already in place. With the population skewed heavily towards the young, Bangladesh simply cannot afford to let this scourge continue.