Tobacco Called 'Deadly in any form or Disguise'
Washington, D.C., May 30, 2006 (PAHO)—The Pan American Health Organization is calling tobacco "Deadly in any form or disguise" in its message for World No Tobacco Day, which is observed in the Americas May 31, 2006.
"Tobacco companies have been misleading smokers for 30 years by promoting "low-tar" and "light" products that are anything but light in their health impact," said Dr. Mirta Roses, PAHO's Director. "These products are light only in name and deliver the same amounts of tar and other cancer-causing substances to the smoker as any other kind of cigarette."
"You can greatly improve your health by quitting smoking, no matter how long you've been smoking. If you switch to light cigarettes, your money continues to go to the tobacco companies with no improvement to your health," Roses said.
The 2006 focus on "Tobacco: Deadly in any form or disguise," highlights the fact that all tobacco products pose significant health risks to consumers and that governments should regulate all tobacco products, not just manufactured cigarettes.
PAHO's primary target is on the deception caused by so-called "light" and "low-tar cigarettes," which tobacco companies introduced in the 1970s. Tobacco industry documents and surveys show that smokers believe light cigarettes are safer than other cigarettes, and that many smokers who would otherwise have tried to quit switched to light cigarettes instead. However, light and regular cigarettes do not differ in their content or in the level of health risks to smokers.
Nicotine, tar and carbon monoxide levels printed on packages are based on a flawed testing system using a machine that doesn't vary its smoking pattern depending on the cigarette. Lower tar and nicotine readings are obtained through engineering of the filter, not through any difference in the content. However, real smokers smoke light cigarettes differently to get more nicotine and effectively defeat the engineering.
"Smokers do not smoke like machines. When the filter makes it harder for smokers to get the nicotine their bodies need, they take more puffs, inhale more deeply and smoke more of the cigarette," explained Roses.
The testing system is so flawed that the World Health Organization and PAHO recommend its elimination. PAHO is calling on governments to further reduce the "lights" deception by prohibiting misleading terminology and related patterns of colors on packaging and advertising. This measure is a requirement of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), an international treaty that entered into force in February 2005 and which 128 countries have ratified.
PAHO was established in 1902 and is the world's oldest public health organization. It works with all the countries of the Americas to improve the health and the quality of life of people of the Americas, and serves as the Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health Organization (WHO).
For more information please contact , PAHO, Public Information, 202-974-3459.