May 30, 2001
The Department of Health (DH) has always been a staunch supporter of tobacco control and has further enhanced its anti-smoking health education and promotion activities in support of the "World No Tobacco Day" tomorrow (May 31).
The Assistant Director of Health (Special Health Services), Dr Cindy Lai said this today (May 30).
The World Health Organisation has designated May 31 each year as the "World No Tobacco Day" and this (2001) year's theme is "Secondhand Smoke Kills. Let's Clear the Air".
Dr Lai said that during the (May) month DH's multi-faceted clinics and services had organised the following anti-smoking programmes:
DH's clinics and services included four Regional Offices, General Out-patient Clinics, Family Health Service, Elderly Health Services, Student Health Service and Tuberculosis and Chest Services.
DH has also arranged for increased broadcasts of an Announcement in the Public Interest (API) on anti-smoking messages on all TV stations the same month. Anti-smoking roving exhibitions and puppet shows have also been organised.
"In addition, the newly-established Tobacco Control Office of DH, working closely with the Council on Smoking and Health, relevant Government Bureaux/Departments and non-governmental organisations, is specially tasked, among others, with building a smoke-free culture in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region through multi-sectoral collaboration and community mobilisation," Dr Lai said.
Smoking is the single largest preventable cause of death and its harmful effects to health are well documented. In Hong Kong, smoking claims about 5 500 lives every year.
Commonly known as secondhand smoke, passive smoking also poses great risk to the health of the public. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has declared secondhand smoke as a Group A human carcinogen. That means secondhand smoke is considered to be very dangerous and there is no safe level of exposure.
Secondhand smoke can cause the following immediate adverse health effects --- cough and phlegm production, eye and nose irritation, exacerbation of asthma and headache and fatigue. The long term effects of secondhand smoke include lung cancer, coronary heart disease, chronic bronchitis or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and sudden infant death syndrome.
Dr Lai said: "The diseases caused by secondhand smoke are preventable. Both smokers and nonsmokers are harmed by it."
"Children are particularly susceptible to the adverse effects of secondhand smoke. These include increased risk of respiratory diseases and middle ear infection."
The Government's established policy on tobacco control is to seek, through a step-by-step approach, to discourage smoking, contain the proliferation of tobacco use and protect public from passive smoking to the maximum extent possible.
A multi-pronged approach, comprising legislation, taxation, publicity, education and enforcement, has been adopted to achieve the policy objectives.
Dr Lai appealed to members of the public to give their support to the "World No Tobacco Day" and join hands with Government Bureaux/Departments and non-governmental organisations to build a smoke-free culture in Hong Kong.