Tobacco, alcohol, more kill 2.7 million people every year in Europe: WHO

At least 2.7 million people are killed by the consumption of tobacco, alcohol, ultra-processed foods (UPFs) every year in Europe, as per the World Health Organization (WHO), which has called on governments to impose stricter regulation of health-harming products.

The WHO said in a groundbreaking report that powerful industries were driving ill-health and premature death by using “misleading” marketing, according to The Guardian.

The organization also added that these industries are also interfering in governments’ efforts to prevent killer diseases such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

More than 7,400 deaths every day across Europe’s 53 states are caused by these tobacco, fossil fuels, UPFs and alcohol, as per the calculations by the new report.

Overall an estimated 2.7 million deaths annually in Europe as well as about a quarter (24.5%) of all mortality are caused by these four industries.

“A small number of transnational corporations … wield significant power over the political and legal contexts in which they operate, and obstruct public interest regulations which could impact their profit margins,” the WHO said.

Adding to this, Dr Hans Henri P Kluge, the WHO regional director for Europe, said: “Industry tactics include exploitation of vulnerable people through targeted marketing strategies, misleading consumers, and making false claims about the benefits of their products or their environmental credentials.”