GUYANA, IN ITS ANTI-TOBACCO DRIVE, FOCUSES ON THIS YEAR’S THEME “GROW FOOD NOT TOBACCO” AND DR. LESLIE RAMSAMMY, GUYANA’S REDOUBTABLE ANTI-TOBACCO CRUSADER LENDS SUPPORT. 

Jun 18, 2023 News

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CONSUMER CONCERNS

PAT DIAL

Kaieteur News – On the May 31 every year since 1987, “World No Tobacco Day” has been observed under the auspices of the United Nations, with the aim of raising awareness of the harmful effects of tobacco use and the dangers of non-smokers being exposed to tobacco smoke.  The theme of this year’s commemoration is “Grow Food Not Tobacco”.

The consumer community worldwide has always taken the themes of World No Tobacco Day seriously and remains resolute in championing the elimination of tobacco use.

Tobacco contains 4000 poisons or toxic substances which when smoked, chewed or inhaled, damages various organs of the body, resulting in the tobacco user being severely afflicted with dangerous ailments.  Among the toxic substances are tar, ammonia, acetic acid, carbon monoxide and nicotine.

Tar, for example, damages the teeth and gums and causes tooth decay, carbon monoxide causes oxygen deprivation resulting in shortness of breath and asthma. Nicotine, in addition to being addictive damages blood vessels and the heart.  The list of diseases caused by tobacco use is long and includes oral and lung cancers as well as other cancers; heart disease; osteoporosis; arthritis as well as damage to the eyes and kidneys.  It is estimated that a regular smoker will lose 15 years of life.

The negative social effects of tobacco use are many.  Tobacco use debilitates the body and causes low performance in the workplace and overall, society would have low productivity and low production.  Tobacco users have periods of hospitalization which could drain a family’s resources and may results in being a cost to the State.  Lower earnings and premature death of breadwinners could cause much deprivation and suffering in families.  Pregnant women who use tobacco could cause their children to be born with many mental and physical defects.

Governments worldwide have become more aware of the dangers of tobacco use by their devoted and selfless work of doctors and laymen who have carried anti-tobacco campaigns over decades.  This has resulted in most countries today having anti-tobacco legislation.  In Guyana, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy stands out among the heroes of the anti-tobacco movement and his untiring work over decades has resulted in the strong National Tobacco Act of 2017.  This Act, among its other stipulations, establishes 100% smoke free environments in all indoor public spaces, in indoor work areas, in all public transportation;  bans all forms of advertising including promotion and sponsorship of and at sports events;  health warnings being featured on 60% of all  packing of tobacco products including the use of photographs.   Furthermore, tobacco products cannot be sold to minors.

The efforts of legislation and anti-tobacco education have begun to bear fruit and the Pan American Health Organization has reported that tobacco use in the Americas has declined from 28% to 16.3% between 2000 and 2020.  In Guyana, there is far less smoking in offices, at social events, in public spaces and in public transport.  This may seem ironic when the Demerara Tobacco Company (DEMTOCO) is one of the most profitable companies in the country.  The answer to this puzzle is that DEMTOCO enjoys a near monopoly of the tobacco trade.

The Tobacco Industry has carried a counter attack on the success of the anti-tobacco efforts, especially in the Western World.  Their strategy is to shift their advertising blitzkrieg to the Developing World and to target children and young people everywhere.  In commenting on this trend, Dr. Barbosa, Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said: “The Tobacco Industry and its allies do not rest.  Currently they spread a lot of misleading information that promotes, especially among young people, the falsity that the use of e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products and hookahs is safe”.  To underscore this effort to attract youngsters, e-cigarettes come in a large number of flavours including bubble gum and candy.  Dr. Ramsammy bemoans this situation: . . .”we still have very poor or almost no regulations when it comes to e-cigarettes, vaping and hookah”. . .  and calls on the Ministry of Health and other complementing agencies to correct this deficiency and fully implement the 2017 Act.

We end this offering with a recent remark by Dr. Ramsammy since it reflects this year’s theme of World No Tobacco Day: “Tobacco is a killer and we should not diminish that fact . . . It is unfathomable that a global system will still support the utilization of 200,000 hectares of land that could grow food to feed the hungry but instead we grow tobacco that kills eight millions of us prematurely. . . It is not just a talk about reducing the use of tobacco but that we ban tobacco; it is not quite an agricultural product”.

 

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