Dubai Customs celebrates World No Tobacco Day with participation of employees and customers

Dubai Customs organised on Wednesday 30 May 2012  health awareness event in collaboration with Al Baraha Hospital in Dubai on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day being observed on 31 May each year and  as part of its social responsibility and promoting its role in protecting society`s members from harmful substances.

Ms. Feryal Tawakul, Executive Director of Community Affairs and Government Partnership Division at Dubai Customs, said: “According to data released by World Health Organisation (WHO), Tobacco use leads to the death of more than five million people every year, a figure exceeding the total deaths resulting from HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. If such  harm continues to grow, tobacco use will lead to the death of more than eight million people per year by 2030. Further, individuals and countries, by reason of tobacco use, sustain considerable health cost due to the need for treating tobacco-related diseases together with the decline in smokers’` productivity as compared to others by reason of the increasingly chances for catching diseases”.

 “No Tobacco Day has become a part of Dubai Customs community agenda based on its keenness on protecting customs employees, clients and their family members’` health and safety from such harm, which causes a number of health problems to man mainly lung, heart and cancer diseases. This Day represents an ideal opportunity for disseminating awareness among people and assisting them with desisting from smoking together with warning them of its risks  as well as combating illegitimate trading in tobacco products”, Ms. Tawkul pointed out. 

The event, which took place at the Dubai Customs main building, included a short drama play, presented by a group of school students, illustrating disadvantages of smoking in addition to an awareness lecture on Harms of Smoking to Man`s Health delivered by Ms. Ilham Saleh, the Health Educator at Al Baraha Hospital and another lecture on Nicotine Harms given by Dr. Ethar Saleem Hassan, the In charge of Protective Medicine at Al Baraha Hospital. 

Further a free medical examination for employees to measure the level of carbon monoxide rate in their bodies was conducted  where such rate rises in smokers` bodies and declines in the others`. Carbon Monoxide is a poisonous gas, which may lead to death. 

WHO created World No Tobacco Day in 1987 to draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and its lethal effects. It highlights the health risks associated with tobacco use and advocates for effective policies to reduce consumption. Tobacco use is the second cause of death globally (after hypertension) and is currently responsible for killing one in 10 adults worldwide.