In his presentation on the status of Tobacco Control Act Implementation in The Gambia, which came in the wake of mass raid in which 42 people were apprehended for breaking TCA rule, Seyfo Singhateh, reminded that annually, around eight million people die from diseases caused by tobacco use, including about 890,000 from secondhand smoke exposure.
He reminded that the restrictions on the sale, supply and use of tobacco related products are still in place.
“The burden of disease from tobacco is increasingly concentrated in Low and Middle level Income Countries (LMICs). Smoking kills 33-50% of all those who use it by an average of 15 years prematurely. Substantial economic resources are lost due to tobacco-related illnesses, premature disability, and death. These losses are especially harmful in LMICs, where economic resources are needed for economic and social development.”
He equally reminded that prevalence shows alarming figures of 31% and 12.8% for male and females respectively, noting that by age group, higher among 25-34 and 35-44years for men, 31.0% and 31.15% respectively.
“An average Gambian male aged 25 to 65 years smoke about 10 sticks of cigarettes. Use of Shisha among school children aged 12 – 20 is about 8.4 %.”
Commenting on the most-talked about question why tobacco kills, Singhateh indicated that it contains nicotine- an addictive substance, which burns at 1000o C – releasing toxins in smoke
“Cigarette smoke has 7,000 chemicals, 70 known carcinogens/harmful substances (tar, cadmium, lead, cyanide, nitrogen oxides, benzo (a) pyrine, carbon monoxide, vinyl chloride, acetaldehyde; damages tissues throughout the body, clogs arteries, causes blood clots/bleeding.”
On the economic point of view, he noted that it increased burden of non-communicable diseases – increased cost of provision of health care, adding that annual health care costs are higher for smokers, and the burden of these costs falls on families, the public purse and employers/insurers.
“Earnings and productivity losses because of tobacco-related illness and premature death can be huge, and are borne by employers and employees. Illness is a major precipitating cause of poverty – impacting negatively on sustainable development.”
