Sri Lanka: The Ministry of Health Says Tobacco-Related Illnesses Are Responsible for More Than 20,000 Deaths Annually

Source from:  Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation 12/04/2014

The Ministry of Health says tobacco-related illnesses are responsible for more than 20,000 deaths annually in Sri Lanka.

Ministry statistics predicts the figure could increase further in the coming years. Non Communicable diseases account for 71 percent of total deaths of the island nation; smoking is a major cause of NCDs. Tobacco products cigars, Beedis, etc are popular in the country in addition to Cigarettes due to the lower price level of them. The World Health Organization says nearly six million people die from tobacco-related illness each year. WHO has also found More than 600,000 are non-smokers dying from breathing second-hand smoke.　According to a statement issued by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids secondhand smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, including hundreds that are toxic and at least 69 that cause cancer. Enditem