According to the survey conducted by World Health Organization (WHO) it was found that tobacco usage is on the rise and it affects public health in various ways. It said that the industry is luring people and the government is not excising any check on the tobacco industry. The theme of the World No Tobacco Day states that tobacco is harmful in all its forms. Tobacco products are addictive, harmful and can cause death.
Dr Yumiko Mochizuki-Kobayashi, Director of the WHO Tobacco Free Initiative said that the tobacco products are unregulated which has increased the levels of health damage. The survey is done in association with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and reports data that are collected about teenage smoking habits in about 132 countries and the Gaza strip. The data reveals that every two out of ten youngsters aged 13 to 15 smoked cigarettes. They have also reported an increase of 21 % among male smokers when compared to females. Apart from cigarette (8.9%) the use of other tobacco products among adolescents was 11.2 %.The study's lead investigator Charles Warren of the CDC's Office of Smoking and Health says that there should be strict regulation. Another important factor is the rise in using water pipes, or hookahs in which the entire family participates. Warren said that hookah is more dangerous than cigarettes. Statistics show that there is an increase in the usage of non-cigarette tobacco among girls. It is estimated that the deaths by 2020 would account to about 10 million. WHO says that tobacco usage is the cause of 90 % of lung cancer cases. It is also the major cause of emphysema, bronchitis, asthma and other respiratory diseases. Dr Catherine Le Galès-Camus, Assistant Director-General, Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health, WHO pointed out that tobacco is now a major contributory factor in global chronic disease epidemic.
