Banning smoking in public places, banning advertising, rising cigarette prices… Tobacco control measures, when implemented as part of an integrated policy, generate good results. In countries that have taken legislative measures to protect their citizens from exposure to tobacco smoke, they have reduced smoking and improved health. In emerging countries, decisions like these are producing encouraging results. This is the case of Brazil, which, in the eyes of many specialists, shows the path to be followed.
In 20 years, the proportion of smokers in the Brazilian population dropped by half. “The drastic measures (adopted) against smoking have contributed to this result”, say the authors of a study from the US and Brazil. Using a simulation model, they calculated a 46% reduction in the number of smokers between 1989 and 2010, which would have been smaller without Brasilia’s tobacco policy.
A recommended tax increase
As early as 1990, Brazilian authorities put into effect a tax on cigarettes. At the same time, they also limited advertising of tobacco products and imposed prevention messages on packages. Six years later, the country passed laws banning smoking in public places.
These measures have the desired effect. For the authors, “this policy has prevented 420,000 deaths in the last two decades”. And if such laws remain in place, an estimated 7 million deaths attributable to smoking could be prevented by 2050. Finally, if taxes are even higher, “the rate of smoking could (still) reduce by 39% between 2010 and 2050. ”
“Brazil is an extraordinary example for emerging economies and developing countries”, write the authors. They insist, however, on the need to reinforce the measures already taken.
Unfortunately, only 5% of the world’s population is protected by national laws on smoking bans, while the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that countries “significantly increase tobacco taxes.” Remember that tobacco kills 4.9 million people a year worldwide. By 2030, that number is expected to reach 8 million.
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