Tobacco: Facts and Risks

Study Notes

Tobacco kills up to half of its users, resulting in more than 8 million deaths each year, including 1.3 million non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke.
Around 80% of the world's 1.3 billion smokers live in low- and middle-income countries.
In 2020, 22.3% of the world's population used tobacco, with 36.7% of men and 7.8% of women being smokers.

There is no safe level of exposure to tobacco, and all forms of tobacco use are harmful.
Cigarette smoking is the most common form of tobacco use worldwide.
Tobacco use contributes to poverty by diverting household spending from basic needs to tobacco.

The economic costs of tobacco use include significant healthcare costs and lost human capital due to tobacco-attributable morbidity and mortality.
Tobacco use drains around US$1.4 trillion from the global economy each year.
High rates of tobacco use can undo efforts towards universal health coverage and exacerbate poverty in poor households.

Healthcare costs include medical and healthcare costs, higher sickness and absence rates, and loss of skilled workers due to premature death.
Other economic costs include time off for "smoke breaks," lost production and lower productivity, fires caused by careless smokers, and damage to building fabric.

Smoking contributes to a range of health problems, including cancer, heart disease, and respiratory disorders, leading to increased healthcare expenditures.
Smokers experience absenteeism, reduced productivity, and premature death, affecting their productivity and causing economic losses.
Exposure to secondhand smoke can also affect non-smokers' productivity in the workplace.

Smoking-related illnesses can lead to disability, early retirement, and decreased earning potential, resulting in lost wages and income for individuals and their families.
Governments generate revenue through taxes on tobacco products, contributing to public funds and budgets.
Public health campaigns and smoking cessation programs aim to reduce smoking prevalence and mitigate healthcare costs.
Fire damage from cigarettes and smoking-related activities results in property damage, loss of assets, and increased insurance premiums.

The production, distribution, and disposal of tobacco products contribute to environmental degradation, requiring resources to address environmental costs.

The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is an international agreement adopted in 2003 to address the global health epidemic caused by tobacco.
The WHO FCTC provides a framework for countries to implement various tobacco control measures.
The MPOWER initiative was introduced in 2007 to scale up implementation of the demand reduction provisions of the WHO FCTC.