Across the world more than 13,000 lives are needlessly lost each day owing to health complications brought about by tobacco use. Yearly, this figure reaches an estimated five million while several other million are left ill, hospitalized, disabled or effected to the extent movement becomes limited.
To highlight these concerns and in a drive to encourage smokers to give up, The Ministry of Health in conjunction with Nicotinell is holding an event in Deira City Center to coincide with World No Tobacco Day, celebrated on 31 of May each year. The event to take place over 3 days will commence on May 31 at 10:00am and run through to 22:00pm on each of the days.
Health educators and specialists from smoking cessation units and Nicotinell will be present to discuss various health hazards related to tobacco use and to offer advice on how to quit smoking with a demonstration of an evidence-based treatment proven significant in managing, and overcoming the addiction of nicotine.
“Many people are not fully aware of what chemicals in the form of fillers are placed in cigarettes. We at the Education department of the Ministry of Health are setting about initiatives to educate both existing and potential smokers as to the dangers and the full impact smoking has on individuals. I truly hope many people will give up the habit on May 31 in support of our efforts and to adopt a healthier, more productive lifestyle” said Dr. Ayesha Al Mutawa, the director of the Central Department of Health Education.
Smoking not only affects smokers but also non-smokers who regularly breathe in secondary smoke. Second hand smoke contains more than 40 cancer causing chemicals and those who breathe in this secondary smoke have a 25 per cent increased risk of developing both lung cancer and heart disease and an 80 per cent increased risk of suffering a stroke.
Some key objectives of World No Tobacco Day in 2006 are to confirm the health ailments due to the use of any tobacco product, highlight the relentless role of the tobacco industry in interrupting any efforts to reveal the true extent of harm caused by tobacco, and more importantly, to request governments throughout the world to lay down stronger and more comprehensive laws to regulate tobacco products.
A higher concern for the Ministry of Health is addressing and tackling the issues related to water pipe smoking, commonly referred to as shisha in the Arab world. A recent study by the World Health Organization (WHO) placed emphasis on water pipe smoking and the dangers of the habit in comparison to cigarettes. A single shisha session normally lasts between twenty to eighty minutes where a smoker inhales around 50 to 200 puffs. In contrast, a cigarette normally lasts 5 – 7 minutes with the smoker inhaling an average of 8 – 12 puffs. With this in mind a single shisha session can be equivalent to the consumption of almost 100 cigarettes. “This is one of the areas we need to focus on in the UAE,” added Dr. Ayesha Al Mutawa.
“Tobacco use in all forms should be recognized as a signal of nicotine addiction, and the extent to which smokers are addicted to nicotine is comparable with addiction to 'hard' drugs such as cocaine and heroin. Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) works by gradually weaning the smoker off of nicotine, while they [the smoker] concentrate on breaking their smoking habits. Smokers who need help controlling withdrawal symptoms benefit from using a Nicotinell patch or gum. The gum is generally used by people wishing to cut down while the patch is more effective for quitting,” states Mr. Rany Victor, spokesperson for Nicotinell, Novartis Consumer Health.
