Focus of World No Tobacco Day 2018: Tobacco and heart disease
Date:2018-2-17 10:41:24 Clicks:525 【Font Size:
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The World Health Organization (WHO) designated 31st May of each year as the annual World No Tobacco Day (WNTD). The theme of WNTD 2018 is “Tobacco and heart disease”.
The focus of the WNTD 2018 will be the cardiovascular health. Tobacco use is a known and important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVD), including coronary heart disease, stroke and peripheral vascular disease, etc. According to WHO, CVD is the leading cause of death worldwide and 12% of all heart disease deaths are contributed by active and passive smoking. However, the knowledge on their association of the public is low. By adopting “Tobacco and heart disease” as the theme of WNTD 2018, WHO encourages parties to organize campaigns to increase the awareness on the link between tobacco and heart diseases, and on the feasible measures that can be adopted by the government and the public to reduce heart health risks imposed by tobacco.
In summary, WNTD 2018 aims to:
- Highlight the links between the use of tobacco products and heart and other cardiovascular diseases.
- Increase awareness within the broader public of the impact tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke have on cardiovascular health.
- Provide opportunities for the public, governments and others to make commitments to promote heart health by protecting people from use of tobacco products.
- Encourage countries to strengthen implementation of the proven MPOWER tobacco control measures contained in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC).