Tobacco health risks under spotlight:
Hookah more harmful than cigarettes
The harmful and deadly effects of tobacco once again came under the spotlight on the occasion of the World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) that was marked on Wednesday.
The member states of the World Health Organization passed a resolution in 1988, calling for the annual celebration of World No Tobacco Day on May 31.
This year’s theme is “We need food, not tobacco”. The 2023 global campaign aims to highlight alternative crop production and marketing opportunities for tobacco farmers and encourage them to grow sustainable and nutritious crops.
Smoking causes cancer, heart and lung diseases, stroke, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Smoking also increases the risk of tuberculosis, certain eye diseases and problems of the immune system, including rheumatoid arthritis.
Iran is among countries that are grappling with adverse impacts of tobaccos use. Experts say Iranians smoke up to 60 billion cigarettes every year. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent annually to treat diseases caused by smoking in the country.
Zahra Sheikhi, the spokesperson of the Iranian Parliament’s Health Commission, told Iran Newspaper about the harmful effects of tobacco use.
“The consumption of tobacco such as smoking cigarettes and hookah is among main causes of developing all kinds of cancers. Approximately 90 percent of lung cancers are caused by smoking cigarettes and other tobacco products, which inflict irreparable damage to the society,” she said.
The lawmaker added that western sanctions have hampered Iran’s efforts to import life-saving drugs. She, however, said the sanctions imposed by the West on Iran have not applied to tobacco products such as cigarettes.
Sheikhi called for raising taxes on tobaccos products in order to reduce their consumption.
“On the one hand, increasing taxes on tobacco products can deter people from smoking. On the other hand, the related revenues can be spent on promoting the health sector and building sports centers.”
Masoud Ehtesham, a lung specialist and faculty member of the University of Medical Sciences of Yazd, also weighed in on the harmful effects of smoking.
“World No Tobacco Day reminds people and officials that they should take the harmful effects of tobacco consumption seriously. Nothing justifies the use of cigarettes because cigarettes are the killers of people in the society,” he said.
The specialist noted that family members of smokers are not immune from the harmful effects of cigarettes.
“Family members of smokers who are exposed to second-hand smoke are at risk of developing cancers.”
Ehtesham also rejected the idea regarding harmlessness of electronic cigarettes. “E-cigarettes have a mechanism which is like regular cigarettes. They cause the release of toxic substances in the body, an abnormal buildup of fluid in the lungs and damage the respiratory system.”
The specialist also raised the alarm about the health risks posed by smoking hookah.
“Scientific studies have revealed that smoking hookah for a session is equivalent to smoking 70 cigarettes,” he said.
Gholamreza Heydari, director of Tobacco Prevention and Control Research Center at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, also touched upon the percentage of Iranian who consume tobacco products.
“With regard to the number of those who smoke cigarettes and hookah as a hobby, between 20 percent and 25 percent of Iranians use tobacco products. Compared to global statistics, we are in an average position.”