Smoking kills 5,500 people in Armenia every year
YEREVAN, May 31. /ARKA/. Smoking kills some 5,500 people in Armenia each year and 52% of them are people under 70 years of age, according to findings of a study conducted in 2020 as part of the World Health Organization's (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC)- the first evidence-based treaty negotiated under the auspices of the WHO.
The FCTC reaffirms the right of all people to the highest standard of health and requires countries to pass evidence-based policies to curtail tobacco use.
According to the Armenian Health Ministry, the large number of smokers in the country makes the population vulnerable in terms of the severe consequences of COVID-19.
Thus, out of 855,000 people in Armenia who are at risk of severe COVID-19, about 14% have concomitant diseases developed as a result of smoking. People with concomitant, especially noncommunicable diseases, have a greater risk of hospitalization due to COVID-19 than healthy citizens.
Studies have shown that smoking aggravates the course of COVID-19 and can double the likelihood of severe illness.
Since 2020, the Ministry of Health has been running a free hotline 060-44-00-01 which can be used to receive counseling of psychologists that can help people to reconsider their behavior and encourage getting rid of this bad habit.
May 31 is World No Tobacco Day, established in 1987 to increase awareness about the dangers of tobacco use.
The World Health Organization estimates that tobacco use kills 8 million people annually. It’s a major contributor to health problems such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory diseases, stroke, diabetes, low birth weight and blindness. World No Tobacco Day this year focuses on urging tobacco users to quit. -0-
