Tobacco prompted diseases cost $1.3b annually

Islamabad : A number of different diseases caused by tobacco products have turned out to be one of the major financial burdens on Pakistan’s public exchequer and personal income, with a $1.3 billion in annual health cost.

This is revealed in a research study, “Health Implications of Smoking in Pakistan,” published by the Center for Global and Strategic Studies – a public policy institute and think-tank in Islamabad.

The study disclosed that cardiovascular diseases alone were costing $0.9 billion annually to the country where financial resources are already limited for development projects. Other major diseases caused by the tobacco products include lung cancer and tuberculosis.

Pakistan is included in the 15 states of the world bearing the worst impacts of smoking related health problems, according to the study. The data shows that 22 million Pakistanis consume the tobacco related products daily, causing deaths of 160,100 individuals annually.

The study said that Pakistan is signatory to the World Health Organisation [WHO] to take effective measures to reduce the demand of cigarettes by applying tools of price and taxes. The WHO has recommended taxes up to 75 percent of the retail price of tobacco products to discourage its use.

However, the situation does not look good for Pakistan with a score of 0.88 out of 5 on cigarettes scorecard.