World No Tobacco Day

This year, healthcare professionals and activists worldwide will once again unite their efforts to inform the public about the detrimental impact of the tobacco industry. Smoking is not merely a harmful habit; it is a global epidemic that claims up to 6 million lives annually, more than 600,000 of which are victims of passive smoking. World No Tobacco Day provides an opportunity to call on everyone to reject the promotion and marketing of tobacco products worldwide. Tobacco consumption continues to remain one of the most serious threats to the health of the global population. The lungs are the organs most severely affected by smoking. Each smoker's day begins with a suffocating cough accompanied by the expectoration of grayish, dirty-brown sputum. Furthermore, if smoking is not abandoned, this harmful habit can lead to emphysema, bronchial asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It has been established that the risk of developing cancer is significantly higher among heavy smokers and those who began smoking at an early age. Smoking triggers the development of various forms of cancer in humans, including lung, esophageal, laryngeal, gastric, and cervical cancer, among others. Today, the demographic of lung cancer patients has significantly shifted toward younger ages, largely due to the early age at which children and adolescents begin smoking. Recently, a new trend has swept the globe: the use of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS, commonly known as vapes). The prevalence of electronic cigarette use among children in all regions exceeds that among adults. However, this is not the case. Today, smoking is widely regarded as an anti-social habit worldwide; millions of people are striving to lead healthy lifestyles and quit smoking, as it has become socially acceptable and fashionable. For all matters regarding the treatment of nicotine dependence, please contact a psychiatrist-narcologist at your place of residence or at the Healthcare Institution "Vitebsk Regional Clinical Center of Psychiatry and Narcology" (tel. 61-45-76, 61-45-80).

Chief Physician of the State Institution "Miory District Center for Hygiene and Epidemiology" G.V. Fedukovich