PH among top 20 'smoking' nations

BY RAPPLER.COM Posted on 06/26/2012 5:51 PM | Updated 06/27/2012 5:47 PM

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MANILA, Philippines - Filipinos are among the world's heaviest smokers. This is according to the Department of Health (DOH), which said Monday, June 25, that the Philippines is among the top 20 nations with the highest smoking population. The finding, based on a study by the American Cancer Society and World Lung Foundation, highlights the country's need to increase anti-tobacco efforts especially with the rise in female smokers in the country. Luz Tagunicar of the DOH-National Center for Health Promotion pointed out the varying trends in Filipino male and female smokers. While the number of Filipino male smokers saw a drop from 2006 to 2008, Tagunicar said the opposite is true for female smokers. The study shows that between 2006 and 2008, the Philippines climbed 10 places from 26th place to 16th place in the country rankings of female smokers. The country now has 3.84 million female smokers. Tagunicar claimed that advertising is to blame for the rise, saying women are increasingly targeted by tobacco firms which promote cigarettes as fashionable. Filipino males, on the other hand, fell from the 6th to the 9th spot in world rankings during the same two year span, with the number of male smokers in the Philippines estimated at 17.6 million as of 2008. Reform needed

DOH consultant Dr Anthony Leachon added that population and economy have also contributed to the Philippines' inclusion in the list. "It is related to the function of population and economy, it's absolute number.Mas mahirap ka, mas naninigarilyo ka (The poorer you are, the more likely you are to smoke)," he said. Given the latest numbers, economists have reiterated the need for new laws that would curb smoking. According to Jo-ann Latuja of the anti-tobacco group Action for Economic Reform, House Bill No. 5727 or the sin tax reform bill, which makes the cost of cigarettes more expensive, could help. "A 10-percent increase in the prices will decrease consumption by 5.8%. Thus, for the most popular brand Fortune, a 76-percent increase in price will decrease consumption by 44%," she said. Under the bill, she said that "down shifting to lower-priced brands will be reduced due to a shift to a simpler tax structure, the steep increase in tax rates for lowpriced tier and hence the reduced gap between higher-priced and lower priced brands." She said higher taxes should result in decreased smoking among the poor and the young. China on top China is in the top 3 for both male and female smokers, topping the list for the highest number of male smokers with 311 million. India was second with 229 million male smokers followed by Indonesia with 53.3 million. The Russian Federation (32.8 million), United States (32.4 million), Japan (23 million), Bangladesh (21.4 million) and Pakistan (17.7 million) rounded up the top 8 list.

For female smokers, the US was first with 23.6 million, followed by China with 13.5 million and India with 11.9 million. The Russian Federation (10.1 million), Brazil (9.3 million), Germany (8.1 million), France (7.1 million), Japan (6.9 million) United Kingdom (6.4 million) and Nauru (4.9 million) took the 4th to the 10th spots, respectively. -- Rappler.com

Pinoy child smokers on the rise, aided by cheap cigarettes

Posted June 15th, 2012 | News | Comments (1) | 839 views

By Alyx Arumpac/PF, GMA News - Joshua and Gian, aged nine and six, make a meager living scouring mountains of trash for recyclable items to sell. The two hardly make enough money to feed themselves, yet everyday, after spending hours clawing through garbage, the two visit a nearby nearby sari-sari store where they spend their hard-earned money on cigarettes. In an episode that aired on June 7, the GMA public affairs program Reporters Notebook tackled the alarming increase in the number of young Filipinos who smoke. According to the Global Youth Tobacco Survey

(GYTS) conducted by the World Health Organization, the percentage of Filipino teens aged 13 to 15 who smoke rose from 19.6 percent in 2003 to 27.3 percent in 2007. Today, the National Youth Commission estimates the figures to reach as high as 40 percent. Young people who smoke may pick up the habit at home, experts say. Over half of the students surveyed for the 2007 GYTS reported having family members who smoked at home. Joshua, the nine-year-old boy interviewed for Reporters Notebook started smoking when he was five because his siblings would send him to the store to buy their cigarettes. Pag wala pong mapasindihan, sinisindihan ko po, says Joshua. In Southeast Asia, cigarettes are cheapest in the Philippines, where the number of smokers is also highest. It is no surprise, therefore, that seven out of 10 leading causes of mortality among Filipinos are smoking-related. According to the Department of Health, around 240 Filipinos die from smoking-related diseases everyday, while another 500 to 800 fall ill. These alarming statistics are among the reasons for the filing of House Bill 5727, also known as the Sin Tax Reform Bill. The Sin Tax Reform Bill seeks to increase the price of cigarette products from P11.50 to P23.50 on its first year of implementation. Tobacco products costing P11.50 and above will be sold for P31.80. On June 6, the House of Representatives, despite lobbying from tobacco companies, passed the Palace-backed bill, which now awaits passage in the Senate. Meanwhile, cigarettes can still be bought per stick at neighborhood stores by curious children whose parents and older siblings continue to puff away.

Phl among 20 nations with high smoking population

By Sheila Crisostomo (The Philippine Star) Updated June 28, 2012 12:00 AM Comments (1)

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines is among the top 20 nations with high smoking population, amplifying the need to scale up anti-tobacco efforts in the country, according to the Department of Health. Citing a study of the American Cancer Society and World Lung Foundation, DOHs National Center for Health Promotion supervising health program officer Luz Tagunicar said Filipinos are among heavy smokers worldwide although the trend between males and females differs. Tagunicar said there has been a slight improvement in the ranking of Filipino male smokers from 2006 to 2008 but a worsening situation was seen among Filipino female smokers. We have improved our spot when it comes to the male smoking population. From sixth spot in 2006, it improved to ninth in 2008, she said in a forum. The number of Filipino male smokers in 2008 was estimated at 17.6 million. The list was topped by China with 311 million; followed by India, 229 million; Indonesia, 53.3 million; Russian Federation, 32.8 million; the United States, 32.4 million; Japan, 23 million; Bangladesh, 21.4 million; and Pakistan, 17.7 million. But the study shows the number of female smokers is on rise as the countrys ranking for this sector went up from 26th to 16th from 2006 to 2008. The US got the top slot with 23.6 million; followed by China, 13.5 million; India, 11.9 million; Russian Federation, 10.1 million; Brazil, 9.3 million; Germany, 8.1 million; France, 7.1 million; Japan, 6.9 million; United Kingdom, 6.4 million; Nauru, 4.9 million; Spain, 4.7 million; Turkey, 4.6 million; Poland, 4.34 million; Ukraine, 4.31 million; and Italy, 4.1 million. Tagunicar said more Filipino women are getting hooked to smoking primarily because they have become the target of cigarette companies. She said tobacco firms have promoted cigarettes as fashion accessories to entice women to smoke.

According to Dr. Anthony Leachon, DOH consultant for non-communicable diseases, population and economy are also factors for the countrys inclusion in the list. Overall, it is related to the function of population and economy, its absolute number The poorer you are, the more you smoke, he added. Leachon warned that a rise in cigarette consumption in the Philippines would also mean an increase in non-communicable diseases like stroke, heart disease, cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder and diabetes. Jo-ann Latuja, an economist from the anti-tobacco group Action for Economic Reform, said the countrys situation may improve if the prices of cigarettes are increased under House Bill 5727 or the sin tax reform bill. A 10 percent increase in prices will decrease consumption by 5.8 percent. Thus, for the most popular brand, a 76 percent increase in price will decrease consumption by 44 percent, she said. Since the price gap between the higher-priced and the lower-priced cigarettes will be reduced due to the shift to a simple tax structure, downshifting of smokers to cheaper brands will be reduced. The tax increases are significant. For example, taxes for cigarettes packed by machine will rise from P2.75 to P12 in the first year and to P22 in the second year. The large increase in taxes will lower demand especially among the poor and the young and thus, curb smoking, Latuja added.

Philippines: Young smokers 'look so cool'

Bill to curtail smoking failed to factor in the repercussions on local livelihoods; almost two million people depend on the tobacco industry
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 By IRIN

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Article Tools Discuss The campaign against smoking, which kills close to 90,000 people a year in the Philippines - on a par with the number of deaths in natural disasters or conflicts - is becoming a losing battle. My friends look so cool smoking, Arnold Santos of Mandaluyong City said, who took up the habit out of peer pressure. Now, I smoke 10 cigarettes a day, the 17-year-old, who has no plans of quitting just yet, said. Despite the passage of the Tobacco Control Act, more Filipino youths are now smoking, indicating that the law has not been effective, Maricar Limpin, executive director of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Alliance Philippines (FCAP), said.

The 2003 act sets both the guidelines for and regulation of the packaging, sale, distribution and advertisements of tobacco products. Among others, it mandates the printing of warnings in either English or Filipino of the harmful effects of smoking. Yet a recent global youth tobacco survey showed that smoking prevalence among Filipino youth had jumped from 15 percent in 2003 to 21.6 percent in 2007. We are losing the war against smoking, Limpin conceded. At least 240 Filipinos die each day - 87,600 a year - from smoking-related diseases such as lung cancer, cardiac arrest, stroke and other chronic-obstructive lung failures, the health department reported. We are losing These figures are based on the the war against 2005-2006 Tobacco and Poverty smoking. Study in the Philippines conducted by the College of Public Health of the University of the Philippines, National Epidemiology Center of the Department of Health and the World Health Organization (WHO). The figures are higher than Malaysia and Vietnam, where 10,000 and 40,000 people respectively die each year from

smoking-related diseases, but lower than Indonesia, where 400,000 people die annually. Graphic warnings Since 2007, separate bills have been pending with lawmakers to introduce the printing of graphic health warnings. An FCAP survey on 10,000 Filipino youths revealed they were more receptive to graphic warnings than text warnings. Limpin said the survey showed that the graphic design had a better ability to convey the health risks related to smoking and some said it stopped them from buying cigarettes. While the visual warning has little effect on long-time smokers, preventing young people from taking up the habit would deny tobacco companies a new market, Limpin said. The industry knows that the introduction of graphic warnings threatens its future market, Limpin said. In the Senate, the bill is now being discussed in the plenary. But in the

Photo: WHO/Philippines

Close to 90,000 Filipinos die each year from smoking-related diseases such as lung cancer, cardiac arrest, stroke and chronic obstructive lung failures

House, composed of district and party list representatives from all 78 provinces, the bill has not passed the committee level because of opposition from legislators. It is being blocked because of fears it could kill the tobacco industry, Northern Samar Rep. Paul Daza, main author of the anti-smoking bill, said. According to the National Tobacco Authority, more than 57,000 farmers are engaged in tobacco farming. La Union Rep. Victor Francisco said the main flaw of the bill was that it would raise the prices of local tobacco products compared with imports. To compete, local manufacturers would have no choice but to increase their prices because of the additional cost, he said. In addition, the bill failed to factor in the repercussions on local livelihoods; almost two million people depend on the tobacco industry. Our tobacco farmers, especially in the north, cannot easily shift to other crops because the soil is not compatible with other produce, Francisco said. The WHOs Tobacco Framework Convention on Tobacco, to which the Philippines is a signatory, recommends the use of

effective campaigns against tobacco consumption. Article 11 requires that state signatories adopt effective measures by September 2008, but the Philippines missed the deadline.

NegOr, Dumaguete City observe World No Tobacco Month celebration

By Jennifer C. Tilos Thursday 28th of June 2012
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DUMAGUETE CITY, June 28 (PIA) -- This years culmination of World No Tobacco Month and Blue Ribbon Awarding ceremony will take place on June 29 with a street parade in Dumaguete City. The activity banners the theme, Stop Tobacco Industry Interference, based in World Health Organizations (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Article 5.3 The following concerned agencies Negros Oriental Tobacco Control and Smoke Free Advocates Alliance (NegOrTocSa), Department of Health Center for Health Development-Central Visayas, Negros Oriental Integrated Provincial Health, and city government of Dumaguete are spearheading the said event. According to Dumaguete City Administrator William Ablong, the activity will be highlighted with a city street parade at 2 p.m. on Friday, from the Rizal Boulevard as the starting point and it will end up at the Freedom Park at Capitol Ground to be followed by a program and live band concert. Joining the parade, Ablong said, will be contingents from the

cities and municipalities with smoke-free ordinance, health officials, students, city and provincial officials. Assistant Secretary Dr. Enrique Tayag of DOH will be the keynote speaker and Dr. Lashmin Legaspi, DOH Assistant Regional Director, will give the rationale of the World No Tobacco Month Celebration, while Dumaguete Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria and Governor Roel Degamo will also give their messages. According to World Health Organization (WHO), tobacco use is one of the leading preventable causes of death. The global tobacco epidemic kills nearly six million people each year, of which more than 600,000 are people exposed to second-hand smoke. Unless we act, it will kill up to eight million people by 2030, of which more than 80 percent will come from low- and middleincome countries, he said. World No Tobacco Month celebrations will educate policymakers and the general public about the tobacco industry's nefarious and harmful tactics and WHO will urge countries to put the fight against tobacco industry interference at the heart of their efforts to control the global tobacco epidemic. Blue Ribbon Campaign Awarding of Recognition, also be given for those cities and municipalities whose effort continues for the implementation of the smoke free ordinance and to be followed by the live band concert to culminates the program. (JCT-PIA 7, Negros Oriental)