How to prevent 100 million deaths from tobacco

A global target is proposed for no nation to have a smoking rate of more than 20% and for countries to reduce the absolute smoking prevalence by at least 5% between 2005 and 2020, which would help prevent at least 100 million fewer tobacco-related premature deaths in people alive today and another 50 million deaths in infants born between now and 2030.

Abstract

For the first time ever, the world's leading agent of death is a man-made substance—tobacco. If current trends continue, tobacco will kill 1000 million people prematurely during this century. 1 Mackay J Eriksen M Shafey O The tobacco atlas. 2nd edn. American Cancer Society, Atlanta2006 Google Scholar Tobacco, which kills at least a third of people who use it, 2 Seeman I National mortality followback survey: 1986 summary, United States—vital and health statistics, series 20, no 19. National Center for Health Statistics, Hyattsville1992 Google Scholar is also the largest single cause of health inequalities in some low-income populations. 3 Jha P Peto R Zatonski W Boreham J Jarvis MJ Lopez AD Social inequalities in male mortality, and in male mortality from smoking: indirect estimation from national death rates in England and Wales, Poland, and North America. Lancet. 2006; 368: 367-370 Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (333) Google Scholar Millions of deaths can be prevented if we take urgent action based on available information. 4 Jha P Chaloupka FJ Moore J et al. Tobacco addiction. in: Jamison DT Breman JG Measham AR Disease control priorities in developing countries. 2nd edn. Oxford University Press, New York2006: 869-885 Google Scholar