On World No Tobacco Day, tobacco control stakeholders work towards neutral tobacco packaging

Smokers become Mason Multi-consumers and alerts are mainly aimed at teenagers: among students between 14 and 17 years old who take nicotine, more than a third use one of the products available on the market, and a large proportion use all of them. The total number of smokers in Italy is decreasing, but the amount of smoking is increasing.

This was documented in the National Tobacco Report published within the framework of the XXV Conference on “Tobacco and National Health Services” held at the Istituto Superiore di Sanità on the occasion of the World No Tobacco Day, celebrated every year on 31 May.

The main data are these

Consumption among the general population (ISS-Doxa survey) 20.5% of the Italian population over 15 years old smoke (10.5 million people, 25.1% males and 16.3% females), but the number of cigarettes smoked has increased on average, to 12.2 cigarettes per day, and a quarter of smokers are over 20 years old.

The smoking rate in the southern region (29.7% for men and 18.9% for women) is higher than that in the central region (23.0% for men and 12.5% ​​for women). The average age of smokers is 46.7 years old.
Among smokers, 81.1% consumed packaged cigarettes, 11.2% smoked hand-rolled cigarettes, 14% smoked heated tobacco cigarettes, and 5% smoked e-cigarettes.

Teen Consumption (ISS-Explora Survey)

• 36.6% of students aged 14-17 and 9.6% of students aged 11 to 13 consumed at least one product: traditional cigarettes, e-cigarettes or heated tobacco (at least once in the month before the survey).
• Unlike adults, consumption is more common among young people, girls.
• In Italy, it is estimated that more than 93,000 deaths are attributed to smoking each year (120,000 deaths in 2020 were attributed to Covid-19).

Tobacco kills more people than alcohol, AIDS, drugs, traffic accidents, homicide and suicide combined. Smoking in particular is a known or probable cause of at least 25 diseases, including COPD and other chronic lung diseases, lung cancer and other forms of cancer, and heart and blood vessel disease.

Mortality and morbidity in Italy

About 50% of smokers die an average of 14 years earlier than non-smokers, and smokers are affected by poor health for many years of their lives.

Maternal smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of low birth weight, premature birth, perinatal mortality, sudden infant death syndrome, bronchopulmonary disease, and mental and behavioral defects; while exposure to secondhand smoke during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage and birth defects.

Fathers’ smoking before and during pregnancy can also negatively affect the health of their unborn children, leading to an increased risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia and associated with higher rates of other types of cancer.

Some studies have also highlighted that passive smoking may have intergenerational effects: for example, grandchildren of women who smoked during pregnancy are more likely to develop asthma.

1. Children exposed to secondhand smoke are at greater risk for bronchiolitis, pneumonia, and other respiratory infections, and are more likely to be hospitalized for asthma, develop middle ear disease, and die before age 5;
2. Additionally, they have more behavioral and academic problems, and children whose guardians smoke are almost 70% more likely to start smoking by age 15.

Tobacco and nicotine dependence treatment guidelines

As part of the meeting, new guidelines for treating tobacco and nicotine addiction were presented, which update the 2008 guidelines and for the first time take into account the situation created by new products that have entered the market in recent years.

Using responses to nine questions, the document assesses the effectiveness of all available treatments, from counselling to medication to digital interventions, such as through apps, to formulate relevant recommendations for the operator.

WHO: “We need food, not tobacco”

This is the theme proposed by the World Health Organization this year, which also aims to raise awareness of how the tobacco industry is interfering with attempts to replace tobacco cultivation with sustainable crops, thereby exacerbating the global food crisis.

Damage associated with tobacco growing and production

• Currently, tobacco is grown as a cash crop in more than 125 countries, covering an estimated 4 million hectares.
• Tobacco cultivation and production causes long-term global ecological damage, contributes to climate change, and plays a critical role in determining the future of agriculture and food security.

Environmental damage

For every 300 cigarettes (15 packs), one tree is consumed in the drying process.

Deforestation for tobacco plantations has serious environmental consequences (loss of biodiversity, soil erosion, water pollution, increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, etc.).

• Growing tobacco requires chemicals — including pesticides and fertilizers — which can pollute the water.
• Cigarette butts contain dangerous substances such as arsenic, lead, nicotine and formaldehyde, and are one of the most common types of litter, especially on beaches.
• Smoking contributes to air pollution: emissions from tobacco products are estimated to be equivalent to 3 million transatlantic flights.

Tobacco smoke contains carbon dioxide, methane and nitrogen dioxide, which pollute indoor and outdoor environments. Tobacco smoke leaves a residue that settles on surfaces and is particularly harmful to children and pets.

Cigarette cartons and packets sold worldwide generate 2,000,000 tons of waste (paper, ink, cellophane, glue and aluminum). E-cigarette and heated tobacco product devices contain environmentally harmful and non-biodegradable materials; cartridges and refill bottles are not recyclable.