Newer types of cigarette substitutes that attract young people

More than 40 million 13-15 year olds have already started using tobacco, the World Health Organization (WHO) has outlined. This is, by any means, quite frightening, and only if urgent action is not taken to discourage such actions.
WHO has, for some time now, embarked on a worldwide campaign to highlight the “strategic, aggressive and well resourced tactics” used by the tobacco industry to target young people, and to dismantle the myths they hold. creation.
The campaign aims to equip young people with the information they need to easily find the treatment of the industry – from product design to marketing campaigns – and equip them with the tools to censor such tactics, thereby empowering people young to stand against. The WHO described this effort as an anti-marketing campaign, as it would reinforce work to assist countries in implementing effective policy interventions to reduce tobacco demand.
In the past, Guyana’s Chronic Disease Co-ordinator, Dr Kavita Singh, has lamented the tobacco industry’s take on new trends, targeting young people. He noted that it was during this time that ‘big tobacco’ used strategic marketing techniques to try and get young people to experiment with new and emerging products, such as the e-cigarettes and products heated tobacco.
Although there is a myth that these products are safe, they are just as harmful as real cigarette smoke. According to WHO, smoking e-cigarettes and hook ups – marketed as “safer” alternatives to conventional cigarettes – is harmful, addictive, and increases the risk of developing heart diseases and ‘ lungs.
It’s worth noting that these products have the same tobacco, which has cancer-causing agents among other deadly emissions. The WHO notes that most of the innumerable flavors on offer – like bubble gum and candy – are there to attract young people, who at least double their chances of smoking cigarettes later in life.
It should be noted that tobacco is responsible for over seven million deaths a year worldwide. This includes approximately 900,000 people who die from diseases related to exposure to tobacco smoke. Over 40 percent of all tobacco-related deaths are from lung diseases such as cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, and tuberculosis.
Guyana’s tobacco control law, enacted in 2017, follows several World Health Organization Convention Articles, and enforces the adoption and implementation of a series of tobacco control policies that make it one of the most complete tobacco control laws. These include: 100 percent smoke-free environments in all covered public places, indoor workplaces, public transportation, and dedicated outdoor spaces to protect people from exposure to tobacco smoke; a ban on all forms of advertising and the promotion and sponsorship of tobacco products; health warnings appear on 60 percent of tobacco product packaging, including images. It also includes a ban on the sale of tobacco products to minors and minors, a ban on the sale of vending machines, and a ban on the manufacture and sale of toys and candies, and any other goods in the form of tobacco products.
However, there is still much work to be done to win the fight against tobacco, as 78 per cent of all deaths here are caused by Communicable Diseases (NCDs), which some of us know strongly associated with tobacco use.
Getting the necessary legislation in place is a good starting point, but there are many other challenges that health authorities here must address if Guyana is to reduce the number of people who die or become ill because of tobacco use or exposure. These challenges relate to monitoring and compliance, tougher enforcement of legislation to ensure the population is protected from the dangers of tobacco use; and, more recently, tackling the newer types of cigarette substitutes, which are proving to be very attractive to young people.