World No Tobacco Day
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World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) is observed around the world every year on 31 May. The annual observance informs the public on the dangers of using tobacco, the business practices of tobacco companies, what the
World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...
(WHO) is doing to fight against the use of tobacco, and what people around the world can do to claim their
right to health The right to health is the economic, social and cultural economic, social, and cultural right to a universal minimum standard of health to which all individuals are entitled. The concept of a right to health has been enumerated in international a ...
and healthy living and to protect
future generations Future generations are Cohort (statistics), cohorts of hypothetical people not yet born. Future generations are contrasted with current and past generations and evoked in order to encourage thinking about intergenerational equity. The Moral agenc ...
. The member states of the WHO created World No Tobacco Day in 1987 to draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and the preventable death and disease it causes. The day is further intended to draw attention to the widespread prevalence of tobacco use, whose negative health effects lead to more than 8 million deaths each year worldwide, including 1.2 million as the result of non-smokers being exposed to
second-hand smoke Passive smoking is the inhalation of tobacco smoke, called passive smoke, secondhand smoke (SHS) or environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), by individuals other than the active smoker. It occurs when tobacco smoke diffuses into the surrounding atm ...
. The day has been met with both enthusiasm and resistance around the globe from governments, public health organizations, smokers, growers, and the
tobacco industry The tobacco industry comprises those persons and companies who are engaged in the growth, preparation for sale, shipment, advertisement, and distribution of tobacco and tobacco-related products. It is a global industry; tobacco can grow in any ...
.


WHO and World No Tobacco Day

WNTD is one of 11 official global public health campaigns marked by the
WHO The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and has 6 regional offices and 15 ...
, along with World Health Day, World Blood Donor Day, World Immunization Week, World Tuberculosis Day, World Malaria Day,
World Hepatitis Day World Hepatitis Day, observed on July 28 every year, aims to raise global awareness of hepatitis — a group of infectious diseases known as hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E — and encourage prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Hepatitis affec ...
, World Chagas Disease Day, World Patient Safety Day, World Antimicrobial Awareness Week, and World AIDS Day.


Timeline

* In 1987, the WHO's
World Health Assembly The World Health Assembly (WHA) is the forum through which the World Health Organization (WHO) is governed by its 194 World Health Organization#Membership, member states. It is the world's highest health policy setting body and is composed of h ...
passed Resolution WHA40.38, calling for 7 April 1988 to be "a world no-smoking day". The objective of the day was to urge tobacco users worldwide to abstain from using tobacco products for 24 hours, an action they hoped would provide assistance for those trying to quit. * In 1988, Resolution WHA42.19 was passed by the World Health Assembly, calling for the celebration of World No Tobacco Day, every year on 31 May. Since then, the WHO has supported World No Tobacco Day every year, linking each year to a different tobacco-related theme. * In 1998, the WHO established the Tobacco Free Initiative (TFI), an attempt to focus international resources and attention on the
global health Global health is the health of populations in a worldwide context; it has been defined as "the area of study, research, and practice that places a priority on improving health and achieving equity in health for all people worldwide". Problems th ...
issue of tobacco. The initiative provides assistance for creating global public health policy, encourages mobilization between societies, and supports the ''
World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control The World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is a treaty adopted by the 56th World Health Assembly held in Geneva, Switzerland on 21 May 2003. It became the first World Health Organization treaty adopted under ...
'' (FCTC). The WHO FCTC is a global public health treaty adopted in 2003 by countries around the globe as an agreement to implement policies that work towards tobacco cessation. * In 2008, on the eve of the World No Tobacco Day, the WHO called for a worldwide ban on all tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship. The theme of that year's day was "Tobacco-free youth"; therefore, this initiative was especially meant to target advertising efforts aimed at youth. According to the WHO, the tobacco industry must replace older quitting or dying smokers with younger consumers. Because of this, marketing strategies are commonly observed in places that will attract youth such as movies, the Internet, billboards, and magazines. Studies have shown that the more youth are exposed to tobacco advertising, the more likely they are to smoke. * In 2015, WNTD highlighted the health risks associated with tobacco use and advocated for effective
policies Policy is a deliberate system of guidelines to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an orga ...
to reduce tobacco consumption, including ending the illicit trade of tobacco products. * In 2016, on World No Tobacco Day, the WHO called on governments to get ready for plain packaging of tobacco products. * In 2017, the focus was "A threat to development". The campaign aims to demonstrate the threats that the tobacco industry poses to
sustainable development Sustainable development is an approach to growth and Human development (economics), human development that aims to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.United Nations General ...
, including the health and economic
well-being Well-being is what is Intrinsic value (ethics), ultimately good for a person. Also called "welfare" and "quality of life", it is a measure of how well life is going for someone. It is a central goal of many individual and societal endeavors. ...
of citizens in all countries. * In 2018, the focus was "Tobacco breaks hearts: choose health, not tobacco" #NoTobacco. * In 2019, the focus was on "Tobacco and lung health". * In 2020, the focus was on "Tobacco and related industry tactics to attract younger generations". * In 2021, the focus was "Commit to quit". * In 2022, the focus was "Tobacco: Threat to our environment". * In 2023, the focus was "Grow food, not tobacco". * In 2024, the focus was "Protecting children from tobacco industry interference". * In 2025, the focus will be "Unmasking the appeal: exposing industry tactics on tobacco and nicotine products".


Themes

Each year, the WHO selects a theme for the day in order to create a more unified global message for WNTD. This theme then becomes the central component of the WHO's tobacco-related agenda for the following year.World Health Organization
World No Tobacco Day 2010.
Geneva.
The WHO oversees the creation and distribution of publicity materials related to the theme, including brochures, fliers, posters, websites, and press releases. Videos were created as a part of the 2008 WNTD awareness campaign for the theme "Tobacco-free youth" and published on
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
, and podcasts were first used in 2009. In many of its WNTD themes and related publicity-materials, the WHO emphasizes the idea of "truth". Theme titles such as "Tobacco kills, don't be duped" (2000) and "Tobacco: deadly in any form or disguise" (2006) indicate a WHO belief that individuals may be misled or confused about the true nature of tobacco; the rationale for the 2000 and 2008 WNTD themes identify the marketing strategies and "illusions" created by the tobacco industry as a primary source of this confusion. The WHO's WNTD materials present an alternate understanding of the "facts" as seen from a global public health perspective. WNTD publicity materials provide an "official" interpretation of the most up-to-date tobacco-related research and statistics and provide a common ground from which to formulate anti-tobacco arguments around the world. Current and past themes include the following: * 2017: "Tobacco – a threat to development" * 2018: "Tobacco breaks hearts" * 2019: "Make Every Day World No Tobacco Day" * 2020: "Tobacco Exposed: The secret's out" * 2021: "Commit to Quit" * 2022: "Tobacco: Threat to our environment" * 2023: "Grow food, not tobacco" * 2024: "Youth step in and speak out - #TobaccoExposed" * 2025: "Unmasking the Appeal"


Event coordination

The WHO serves as a central hub for fostering communication and coordinating WNTD events around the world. The WHO website provides a place for groups to share news of their activities, and the organization publishes this information online by country.


Awards

Since 1988, the WHO has presented one or more awards to organizations or individuals who have made exceptional contributions to reducing tobacco consumption. World No Tobacco Day Awards are given to individuals from six different world regions (Africa, Americas, Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, South-East Asia, and Western Pacific), and Director-General Special Awards and Recognition Certificates are given to individuals from any region.


Global observance

Groups around the world – from local clubs to city councils to national governments – are encouraged by the WHO to organize events each year to help communities celebrate World No Tobacco Day in their own way at the local level. Past events have included letter writing campaigns to government officials and local newspapers, marches, public debates, local and national publicity campaigns, anti-tobacco activist meetings, educational programming, and public art. In addition, many governments use WNTD as the start date for implementing new
smoking Smoking is a practice in which a substance is combusted, and the resulting smoke is typically inhaled to be tasted and absorbed into the bloodstream of a person. Most commonly, the substance used is the dried leaves of the tobacco plant, whi ...
bans and
tobacco control Tobacco control is a field of international public health science, policy and practice dedicated to addressing tobacco use and thereby reducing the morbidity and mortality it causes. Since most cigarettes and cigars and hookahs contain or us ...
efforts. For example, on 31 May 2008, a section of the ''Smoke Free Ontario Act'' came into effect banning tobacco "power walls" and displays at stores in this
Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
province, and all hospitals and government offices in Australia became smoke-free on 31 May 2010. The day has also been used as a springboard for discussing the current and future state of a country as it relates to tobacco—for example in
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
which, with 275 million tobacco users, has one of the highest levels of tobacco consumption in the world. The
Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...
has also launched a Smoking Cessation Helpline to help curb the widespread addiction in the country.


Resistance

For some, WNTD is seen as a challenge to individual freedom of choice or even a culturally acceptable form of discrimination. From ignoring WNTD, to participating in protests or acts of defiance, to bookending the day with extra rounds of pro-tobacco advertisements and events, smokers, tobacco growers, and the tobacco industry have found ways to make their opinions heard.


Smoker response

There has been no sustained or widespread effort to organize counter-WNTD events on the part of smokers. However, some small groups, particularly in the United States, have created local pro-smoking events. For example, the '' Oregon Commentator'', an independent conservative journal of opinion published at the
University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...
, hosted a "Great American Smoke-in" on campus as a counter to the locally more widespread Great American Smokeout: "In response to the ever-increasing vilification of smokers on campus, the Oregon Commentator presents the Great American Smoke-in as an opportunity for students to join together and enjoy the pleasures of fine tobacco products". Similarly, "Americans for Freedom of Choice", a group in
Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...
, organized "World Defiance Day" in response to WNTD and Hawaii's statewide ban on smoking in restaurants.


Industry response

World No Tobacco Days have not induced a positive vocal response from the tobacco industry. For example, a memo made publicly available through the Tobacco Archives website was sent out to executives of
R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company The R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (RJR) is an American tobacco manufacturing company based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Founded by namesake R. J. Reynolds in 1875, it is the largest tobacco company in the United States. The company is a w ...
in preparation for the third annual World No Tobacco Day, which had the theme of "Childhood and Youth Without Tobacco". The memo includes a warning about the upcoming day, a document that explains the arguments they anticipate the WHO making, and an explanation of how the company should respond to these claims. For example, in response to the anticipated argument that their advertisements target children, the company's response includes arguments that claim their advertisements are targeted towards adults by using adult models, and that advertisements lack the power to influence what people will actually purchase. In
Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...
, since the World No Tobacco Day is the one day that the media is obligated to publicize tobacco control issues, the British American Tobacco company uses the eve of the day to administer counter-publicity. In 2001, their strategy included events such as a visit with the President of the International Tobacco Growers Association. Some major pharmaceutical companies publicly support WNTD. For example,
Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered at The Spiral (New York City), The Spiral in Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 184 ...
was a large sponsor for many WNTD events in the
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
in 2008. At the time, Pfizer was preparing to release its drug Chantix ( varenicline) into the Middle Eastern market. The drug was "designed to activate the nicotinic receptor to reduce both the severity of the smoker's craving and the withdrawal symptoms from nicotine".


Grower response

Many tobacco growers feel that anti-tobacco efforts by organizations such as the WHO jeopardize their rights. For example, the International Tobacco Growers Association (ITGA) argues that poor farmers in Africa may suffer the consequences if WHO anti-tobacco movements succeed. They also argue that these efforts may gang up on manufacturers of tobacco and be an attack on the industry, therefore hurting the growers.


Potential for Indigenous American opposition

As some traditions and ceremonies of a number of cultures and ethnicities of
Native Americans in the United States Native Americans (also called American Indians, First Americans, or Indigenous Americans) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of the United States, particularly of the Contiguous United States, lower 48 states and A ...
and
First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...
in North America have been based on tobacco since pre-Columbian times, some potential for unintended abrogation of such traditions may exist from authorities seeking to eliminate tobacco from worldwide use – traditions of ''non''-combustive use of tobacco for some forms of indigenous American ceremonial purposes have begun to be used for cessation of cigarette use among indigenous tribal members, while members of the
Oglala Lakota The Oglala (pronounced , meaning 'to scatter one's own' in Lakota language, Lakota) are one of the seven subtribes of the Lakota people who, along with the Dakota people, Dakota, make up the Sioux, Očhéthi Šakówiŋ (Seven Council Fires). A ...
have had their struggles to retain important historic tribal artifacts used for tobacco's traditional role in their ethnicity's traditions, to prevent their illegal sale. It is possible that a 2015 survey from
Health Canada Health Canada (HC; )Health Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Health (). is the Structure of the Canadian federal government#Departments, with subsidiary units, department of the Gove ...
concerning future tobacco control legislation in Canada, having a section requesting advice from indigenous peoples within Canada, showed the potential of concern over such issues.


See also

*
List of smoking bans Smoking bans are public policies, including criminal laws and occupational safety and health regulations, which prohibit tobacco smoking in certain spaces. Laws pertaining to where people may smoke vary around the world. Smoking bans by country ...
* No Smoking Day * International Pipe Smoking Day


References


External links

*
Tobacco Free Initiative (WHO)
* {{Authority control Recurring events established in 1988 Health awareness days International observances May observances Tobacco control World Health Organization