Opinion | Editorials

It's time to stub out the cancer stick

UAE steps up efforts to formulate policies that prohibit smoking in public places.

  • Gulf News
  • Published: 23:05 May 31, 2009
  • Gulf News

Chances are that yesterday was like any other day for you. Apart from some stories in the Gulf News and other media, you were probably unaware of the fact that yesterday was, after all, 'World No Tobacco Day'. Yet, the effects of both first-hand and second-hand smoking are well researched. Over the past 50 years, medical researchers have established the health hazards of inhaling tobacco smoke, be it cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure, breathing difficulties and cancer of the mouth, lung and throat.

The content of cigarettes includes carcinogens such as benzene and arsenic, while nicotine is a highly addictive chemical. It produces cravings most difficult to overcome. In this context, government officials across the UAE have been in the forefront of establishing policies and regulations to prohibit smoking in public places.

According to the latest statistics, adherence to anti-smoking rules is high across the UAE, showing that the tide of public opinion has indeed turned against those who still believe it is socially acceptable to light up. There is nothing to be gained among teens, for example, in choosing to smoke to impress their peers, just as there is nothing to be gained from blackened lungs, hardened arteries and a heart struggling to pump blood around a chemically polluted circulatory system.

A dangerous trend, according to the Emirates Respiratory Society, is the growing number of women smoking shisha. Sadly, because of the biological differences between the sexes, women who smoke die faster than their male counterparts. The evidence also points to lung cancer becoming the number one killer among women, replacing breast cancer.

The lessons are clear: smoking is harmful to your health and the health of those around you.

As individuals, it is our responsibility to ensure that every day is No Tobacco Day.

Your comments


Smoking is injurious to health is what is written on all cigarette packets. But it is very rarely that anybody bothers to check the fine print. Smoking is not only hazardous to the smoker but also to the people around. Smoking initially starts off as a fad and then becomes an addiction. By putting a ban on smoking in public, the country has taken a bold step. Cost of cigarettes could be raised astronomically so that at least the young kids would find it difficult to buy cigarettes. It is very tough to convince people to stop smoking. Yet, the anti-smoking campaign must continue in its pursuit of dissuading people from smoking. It is like ?try and try until you succeed?. Each individual must put in some effort to increase awareness about the hazards of smoking and participate in the anti-smoking campaigns.
Naina Nair
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: June 01, 2009, 13:57

Authorities around the world make a buzz about smoking hazards, but no country has ever annouce to stop selling the ciggerates. The campaign would only be successful when there are no shops selling ciggerates. Is any country listening...
Matin Ahsan
Lucknow,India
Posted: June 01, 2009, 11:41

I think that anti-smoking campaigns are one of the most difficult social campaigns. Convincing the mass out of an addiction is probably the biggest reason and the biggest challenge. However the UAE is one of the successful countries to accomplish many powerful and winning anti-smoking campaigns comparing to other countries.
Mousa Nimer
Dubai,UAE
Posted: June 01, 2009, 10:29

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