Tobacco Documents Online

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION ~/--'EB77/22 ~ ORGANISATION MONDIALE DE LA SANTt , vember 1985 EXECUTIVE BOARD Seventy-seventh Session Provisional agenda item 15 TOBACCO OR HEALTH Report by the Programme Committee 1. The Programme Committee reviewed a draft report on the "WHO Programme on Smoking and Health: The adverse health effects of tobacco use", to be submitted to the Executive Board at its seventy-seventh session in January 1986. It was suggested that the title be changed to "WHO Programme on Tobacco or Health", or "WHO Programme on Tobacco and Disease", or "WHO Programme on Diseases Caused by Tobacco", since the choice was smoking or health, and the pathological agent was tobacco not merely in its smoked, but in all its forms. The draft report had been referred to, and received the benefit of comments from a number of outside experts and organizations. The Committee made a number of suggestions for improving the r` port before submission to the Board.1 2. The Committee noted that the whole problem of smoking and tobacco-related diseases had reached epidemic proportions on a worldwide scale - indeed, a "pandemic". While favourable trends could be seen in a few developed countries, the overall trend in most countries, especially in developing ones, showed continuing, significant increases in the use of tobacco products. In particular, women were joining the ranks of smokers in large numbers, while ."..~..r children and young people were especially targeted as new customers by the tobacco industry. In the battle between health and commercial interests, it was less than clear that health was winning the fight against tobacco;~ health could and should win this battle. 3. In the field of smoking and health, unlike a number of other programme areas, WHO faced the active opposition of maior interest groups. WHO had no vested interest other than concern for health and scientific truth. There was ample, scientifically proven and validated evidence of the direct causal link between a substantial number of diseases and use of tobacco products. Tobacco was clearly addictive and the main cause of at least one million premature deaths a year. Some hazardous chemicals and pollutants which received extensive publicity in the media actually caused far less morbidity and mortality than tobacco, which often received little or no attention as a health risk. The presence of :carcinogens and other toxic substances in tobacco smoke and other tobacco products was a known fact. WHO had to state this clearly and unequivocally, since there.was constant . misrepresentation by adverse interests. 4. WHO was calling for a common sense public health approach and action now, rather than deferral of action pending further basic research. Research was still needed on the behavioural aspects of smoking, but to suggest priority for continuing basic research further to prove the causal relationship between disease and tobacco was unnecessary and would simply buy time for adverse commercial interests. 5. WHO had to take a firm position against any form of so-called "safe" ciQarette or tobacco product. Nicotine was clearly addictive and, considering the many tobacco-induced diseases, "safe" tobacco did not exist. There was no safe dosage of tobacco. 1 The report, originally submitted as document EB77/PC/WP/6, will be distributed separately in revised form as document EB77/22 Add.l.