ZAGREB, May 31 (Hina) - Every other person in Croatia is a smoker and an especially high increase in the number of smokers has been recorded among women and high school students, who account for 30 percent of all smokers, it was said
at a news conference held in Zagreb on Wednesday on the occasion of the World No Tobacco Day, May 31. Health Minister Ana Stavljenic Rukavina said the hazard of tobacco had been confirmed by numerous medical researches, which link tobacco with certain kinds of cancer, atherosclerosis and heart diseases. It is estimated that between two and seven percent of Gross Domestic Product is spent for the treatment of the consequences of smoking, and the overall funds allocated to the health system account for about 10 percent of GDP. Stavljenic Rukavina stressed the importance of implementing a national programme on the prevention of smoking. The health system will be losing 70 to 90 million kuna monthly due to
ZAGREB, May 31 (Hina) - Every other person in Croatia is a smoker and
an especially high increase in the number of smokers has been
recorded among women and high school students, who account for 30
percent of all smokers, it was said at a news conference held in
Zagreb on Wednesday on the occasion of the World No Tobacco Day, May
31.
Health Minister Ana Stavljenic Rukavina said the hazard of tobacco
had been confirmed by numerous medical researches, which link
tobacco with certain kinds of cancer, atherosclerosis and heart
diseases. It is estimated that between two and seven percent of
Gross Domestic Product is spent for the treatment of the
consequences of smoking, and the overall funds allocated to the
health system account for about 10 percent of GDP.
Stavljenic Rukavina stressed the importance of implementing a
national programme on the prevention of smoking.
The health system will be losing 70 to 90 million kuna monthly due to
the reduction of health insurance contributions, however, that
money will be secured from the budget thanks to increased excise
taxes, including those on tobacco products, she said.
Berislav Skupnjak, liaison officer for the World Health
Organisation, said 11,000 people were dying every day from the
consequences of smoking.
The number of smokers in central and east Europe has nevertheless
decreased and the WHO is preparing a convention on fighting smoking
with the aim of continuing this successful trend. Signatories to
the convention will pledge, among other things, to ban the
advertising, smuggling and production of tobacco.
Tobacco today is a source of major income for the state, however,
WHO researches have shown that, when all costs of the treatment of
smoking-related diseases are taken into account, tobacco actually
generates a deficit of 200 billion dollars annually, Skupnjak
said.
(hina) rml