Wean youth away from smoking

On Monday, the UAE Cabinet approved graphic warnings on cigarette packets in an effort to deter people from taking up the dangerous habit. And cigarette manufacturers will also be prohibited from marketing their products with such alluring descriptive adjectives as ‘light', ‘smooth' or ‘silky'.

These measures are most welcome as the hawkers of cigarettes will try any means to improve the image of their cancer-causing products to entice smokers to continue. But taking these steps is but one means of fighting tobacco usage, and they form part of a comprehensive campaign against smoking.

Public education campaigns are vital in getting the message across to smokers that their habit poses a danger to themselves and others.

Stricter rules regarding smoking in public areas also thwart smokers, but the youth need to be swayed from the notion that cigarette smoking is mature and makes them look glamorous. It doesn't. It simply endangers their health with a chemical that is highly addictive and damaging to the body.

In the UAE, cigarette prices are low compared to those in other countries, and punitive taxes need to be imposed on tobacco products to deter smokers. And those who would smuggle or hawk black market untaxed cigarettes need to be severely punished.