ISLAMABAD: ‘World No Tobacco Day’ will be observed across the world including in Pakistan on Saturday, with a strong commitment to check use of tobacco.
The day is observed around the world every year on May 31 with an aim to encourage a 24-hour period of abstinence from all forms of tobacco consumption across the globe.
It is further intended to draw global attention to the widespread prevalence of tobacco use and to negative health effects as according to the World Health Organization (WHO), the tobacco epidemic is one of the biggest public health threats the world has ever faced, killing nearly six million people a year.
More than five million of those deaths are the result of direct tobacco use while more than 600 000 are the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke.
In addition, approximately one person dies every six seconds due to tobacco, accounting for one in 10 adult deaths. Up to half of current users will eventually die of a tobacco-related disease.
