The proportion of smokers is declining worldwide

2023-08-01 13:48:00

More and more states are taking action against smoking. 5.6 billion now live in countries that have implemented at least one of the recommended measures to protect non-smokers. These include: warnings against smoking on cigarette packs, bans, smoking bans in public places and high taxes on tobacco products. According to WHO Director Rüdiger Krech, the most common measure is disgusting pictures on packages.

Eight million deaths

For a long time only two countries had the highest standards for a tobacco-free world: Brazil and Turkey. Two more have been added since the last report in 2021: Mauritius and the Netherlands.

According to WHO estimates, without protective measures there would be 300 million more smokers. 1.3 billion people use tobacco (to smoke, chew or snuff) and more than 8 million people die from it each year worldwide. Among them are 1.2 million non-smokers who die from secondhand smoke, including 65,000 children.