As per the estimates of WHO (and the FDA of the US) 1.3 billion people (among the 7.9 billion across the world) who smoke, and 80% of them live in low and middle- income countries. Smoking is thus an epidemic and a great public health threat, killing over eight million people around the year. Over seven million of these people die due to direct tobacco use, and 1.2 million non-smokers who are exposed to second-hand smoke. And, as per the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, traditional cigarette smokers are 30% to 40% more likely than non-smokers to develop Type 2 diabetes.
A recent article by Dr. Smiljanic Stasha points out that 1) smoking causes over seven million deaths every year, 2) 5.6 million young Americans might die because of smoking 3) Second hand smoking causes 1.2 million deaths worldwide 4) Smoking is one of the world’s leading causes of impoverishment, and 5) In 2015, 7 out of 10 smokers (68%) reported that they wanted to quit completely. And a recent issue of Nature Medicine points out that after the WHO adopted the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in 2003, it has been included as a Global Development Target in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SD). If all the 155 signatory countries adopt smoking bans, health warnings, advertising bans and raise cigarette costs, this sustainable development is indeed possible.
