World No Tobacco Day 2016: Get ready for plain packaging

Every year, on 31 May, the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners mark World No Tobacco Day (WNTD), highlighting the health risks associated with tobacco use and advocating for effective policies to reduce tobacco consumption.{{more}}

For World No Tobacco Day, May 31, 2016, WHO and the secretariat of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control are calling countries to get ready for plain (standardized) packaging of tobacco products.

Plain packaging is an important demand reduction measure that reduces the attractiveness of tobacco products, restricts use of tobacco packaging as a form of tobacco advertising and promotion, limits misleading packaging and labelling, and increases the effectiveness of health warnings.

Plain packaging of tobacco products refers to measures that restrict or prohibit the use of logos, colours, brand images or promotional information on packaging other than brand names and product names displayed in a standard colour and font style.

Tobacco use poses a serious public health problem. Not only is the person smoking affected by this practice, but also others around them can suffer as a consequence of second-hand smoking.

Smoking is responsible for several diseases, such as cancer, long-term (chronic) respiratory diseases, and heart disease, as well as premature death. Smoking is the largest cause of preventable death in the world.

Smoking is closely linked to cancer; lung cancer is one of the most common causes of cancer deaths in the world. According to the American Lung Association, 90 per cent of male lung cancer patients develop their disease because of smoking. In addition, male smokers are 23 times more likely to develop lung cancer than those who have never smoked. Female smokers are 13 times more likely to develop lung cancer than those who have never smoked.

Other types of cancers that smoking significantly increase the risk of are bladder cancer, kidney cancer, cancers of the pharynx and larynx (throat cancer), mouth cancer, oesophagus cancer, cancer of the pancreas, stomach cancer, among others.

The objectives of the tobacco plain packaging measure can help to reduce the attractiveness and appeal of tobacco products to consumers, particularly young people; increase the noticeability and effectiveness of mandated health warnings; reduce the ability of the retail packaging of tobacco products to mislead consumers about the harms of smoking; and through the achievement of these aims in the long term, as part of a comprehensive range of tobacco control measures, contribute to efforts to reduce smoking rates.

Tobacco plain packaging operates as part of a comprehensive set of tobacco control measures. It is an investment in long-term health and its full effects will be seen over the long term.

Dr Rosmond Adams is a medical doctor and a public health specialist.

He may be emailed at adamsrosmond@gmail.com