Wacky Tobacky: Which is more “wacky,”
the drug itself or the tobacco industry?
In our brief discussion of global
corporations and their influence on health, tobacco immediately came to mind. The
Tobacco industry affects health globally in several different ways, namely tobacco-related morbidity and mortality and the economic deprivation of impoverished
tobacco users.
The annual mortality experienced worldwide is estimated to account for three
million deaths. It is projected that this number could reach up to ten million deaths
annually within 30 to 40 years (From 2000), 7 million of which will occur in
low income countries.1 Mortality, however, is but the end result of
the ensuing morbidity caused by years of loyal tobacco consumption and its
negative health effects, namely: a 2 to 4 –fold increase in coronary heart
disease and stroke, a 230% increase in lung cancer among men (130% for women),
and increased mortality from chronic obstructive lung disease by 120-130%. In
the U.S. the effects of cigarette smoking cause an estimated 443,000 deaths
annually (nearly 1 out of 5 deaths).3 Although smoking has declined
in higher income countries, tobacco consumption has increased approximately 46%
in countries classified in the medium development category. If trends continue,
the proportion of increase/decrease in high and low development countries tends
to favor an overall increase in the consumption of tobacco (from 30% to 35%
globally).2 Thus, one could surmise that an increase in smoking
prevalence in less developed countries might subsequently result in increased
mortality rates as the fledging health systems become overburdened treating
tobacco-related diseases.
The effects of tobacco consumption
on health extend well beyond its direct effects. The economic effects of
tobacco consumption may have a significant effect upon the impoverished –
exacerbating state of malnourishment and hunger. In Bangladesh, the consumption
of cigarettes increased approximately 33% from 1992 to 1996. Had not the
increase from 1992-1993 to 1994-1995 occurred, residents in Dhaka Bangladesh
could have saved enough to purchase 15% more meat, 14% more milk or 79% more
eggs.4 This trend is especially concerning considering that the
prevalence of smoking is inversely related to the monthly household income with
the poorest (<$24/month) having a smoking prevalence of 58.2%. To put this
into perspective, men in Bangladesh who smoke cigarettes spend five times as
much on cigarettes than house rent, 18 times as much as health, and 20 times as
much as education. It is staggering to
think of what the money wasted on tobacco could have accomplished had it not
been for the greed of tobacco companies.4
The greed of the tobacco industry
seems to have no regard for life or restraint. Their promotion and advertisement
strategies unabashedly target susceptible populations such as youth5,
and those in low income countries.6 Tobacco companies target these
populations by: denying that their product results in negative health outcomes,
pouring millions of dollars into deceptive advertising, interfering with
national public health laws, spurring trade policies benefiting tobacco growing
nations, and political efforts to keep tobacco taxes low.6 These
efforts do not go unrewarded. The consumption of tobacco through cigarettes is
increasing in Eastern European and Asian countries while simultaneously
decreasing in North America and West Europe.6 It seems as if the
tobacco company’s unfettered greed seems not be content with coercing the
health and wealth out of developed countries but, after aggressive policy
measures are put in place, rather to pursue and take advantage of the most
vulnerable and impoverished. These people may have little say in regards to
their own tobacco-related health. Some papers have even advocated for tobacco
cash crops in these areas to stimulate economic growth. This may initially seem
like a good idea but it would only act to contribute to the wealth and power of
the tobacco companies whose economic power may be much greater than the
countries whereby it profits. The wealth garnished from destroying the health
of others is then used to further spread the disease and to lobby against
aggressive policies and trade regulations. Although this industry is not the
only one to take advantage of the vulnerable and impoverished, it certainly
seems to do so with the utmost disregard for human well-being.
11
Peto R, et al. Mortality from smoking worldwide.
British Medical Bulletin.1996;52:12-21
22 Corrao M, Guindon G, Cokkinides V, and Sharma N.
Building the evidence base for global tobacco control. Bulletin of the World
Health Organization. 2000;78:884-890.
33 Centers for disease control. Smoking and tobacco use. Centers for disease control and
prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/health_effects/effects_cig_smoking/ . Updated August 1, 2013. Accessed 12/5/2013
44 Efroyson D, Ahmed S, Townsend J, et al. Hungry
for Tobacco: An Analysis of the Economic Impact of Tobacco Consumption on the
Poor in Bangladesh. Tobacco Control. Sept. 2001;10:212-217. BMC Public Health.
2008;8:
55 Chen P, Chiou H, Chen Y. Chinese version of the
Global Youth Tobacco Survey: cross-cultural instrument adaptation. BMC Public
Health. http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458-8-144.
Published 4/30/2008. Accessed 12/5/2013.
66 Dagli E. Are low income countries targets of the
tobacco industry? International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease. 1999;3:113-118
ReplyDeleteWhen reading your post I thought about how the tobacco companies in the US are responding to the public knowledge of how dangerous addiction to cigarettes can be. I have recently been seeing more and more ads for a new type of cigarette. With the emergence of electronic cigarettes or e-cigarettes I’m curious to see how they will affect the rates of tobacco consumption in developed countries. The CDC has reported an increase in the number of middle school and high school aged kids that are trying electronic cigarettes. It was also noted that since about 90% of smokers started at that age that this could be a new way for the tobacco companies to reach out and get more people hooked on nicotine and tobacco products therefore increasing their number of consumers.
http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2013/p0905-ecigarette-use.html
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ReplyDeleteTobacco industry is one of legal industries but it kills a lot of people who consumed it. Also, there are bunch of tobacco alternatives such as cigarettes, cigars, pipes and waterpipes. I heard that young people are easily addicted to tobacco. Even if they stated it for fun the consequence is tragic. Data shows teen smokers are suffered from shortness of breath three times as often as non-smokers. There are a lot of smokeless tobacco products as well such as oral or nasal use. The data the writer mentioned above is really surprising that consumption of tobacco has increased a lot in meddle income countries although smoking has declined in higher income countries. It means people in poor regains are more likely to be addicted to tobacco and suffered from tobacco-attributable diseases while the tobacco industry seems to become greedy.
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