31 May, 2021
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The 26th World No Tobacco Day will be observed globally on 31st May 2021, under the theme “Commit to Quitting” followed by a year-long campaign with the same theme. As the world continues to reel under the impact of COVID-19, the fear of contracting the disease is motivating smokers to quit. Tobacco smokers have a higher risk of developing severe form of COVID-19 infection and of dying from the disease. Worldwide, around 780 million people have the motivation to quit, but only 30% of them have access to the tools that can help them to do so. This has underlined the urgent need to provide people with the tools and resources they need to make a successful attempt at quitting.
Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death and illness. It causes a range of cancers as well as heart disease, stroke and emphysema (a lung condition that causes shortness of breath). Tobacco use is not only impacting the health and wellbeing of the lives of millions of people but also poses a threat to economic and social development, including the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Every year, more than 8 million people die worldwide because of tobacco use. More than 7 million of those deaths are the result of direct tobacco use while around 1.2 million are the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke.