Word Building... ...part 32

Numerous attempts have been made to reduce and finally stop the use of tobacco. A few of them include increased taxation, restrictions on advertising propaganda and smoke bans in public places.

A smoke ban was first issued in 1975 by the US state of Minnesota by the Minnesota Clean Indoor Air Act which issued a ban on smoking in most public spaces. The city of Aspen in Colorado became the first state to ban smoking in all restaurants and bars.

The Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act of 1971 prohibits the broadcasting of advertisements promoting tobacco products through the television and radio in the US.

Many countries also enforce a smoking age, below which no person would be sold a tobacco product. In most countries the smoking age ranges from sixteen to nineteen. However, these restrictions are not enforced strictly in many countries. 

World No Tobacco Day was originally an initiative from the World Health Organization. 7^th April was officially designated as the No Tobacco Day when the idea was initially proposed by the World Health Organization.

In 1987, the WHO called for a twenty-four hours' abstinence from tobacco on 7^th April 1988. The first World No Tobacco Day was observed on 31^stMay, 1988. Since then this day has been observed every year by the WHO which selects a different anti-Tobacco theme to concentrate on for the year.

Every year the WHO appeals to the people across the globe asking them to highlight the chosen theme in their demonstrations against tobacco on the way to a healthy tobacco-free world. Their propaganda also includes processions, public demonstrations.

Let us take a look at the WHO themes for WNTD for the last ten years.

Aim: To encourage countries to exercise "strict regulation" on various tobacco products.

Aim:  To spread awareness about the fact that tobacco is the second major cause of deaths in the modern world.

Aim: To "catch you young" i.e. to prevent youth and adolescent smoking.

Aim: To spread awareness about the toxic nature of tobacco through pictorial depiction on product packages.

Aim: To protect girls and women from the smoking epidemic' that has spread across the globe.

Aim: To popularize the WHO treaty signed on 21^st May, 2003. The treaty states that its purpose is "to protect present and future generations from the devastating health, social, environmental and economic consequences of tobacco consumption and exposure to tobacco smoke."

Aim: To control the tobacco industry's efforts to undermine the anti-tobacco movements.

Aim: To reduce all kind of publicity and advertising on the part of the tobacco manufacturing industries.

Aim: To reduce the sale of tobacco products by increasing the cost of purchase.

Aim: To cut down on sales of illegal tobacco that is twice as harmful and also to block a major portion of money earned by tobacco industries.

Aim: To reduce the appeal of tobacco products by the use of plain outer covers with one standard colour sans any brand promotion.

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This theme-based observation of the day by the WHO over the years has been extremely precious in terms of spreading awareness about the toxic nature of tobacco.

O_o Did You Know? o_O

One of the earliest smoke bans was a 1575 Roman Catholic Church Regulation which forbade the use of tobacco in any church in Mexico.
On 12th July 1999, a division bench of the Kerala High Court banned smoking in public, declaring it to be unconstitutional and violative of basic human rights under Article 21 on the Indian Constitution.
Chandigarh became the first smoke free city in India while Kerala became the first completely smoke-free state in the world.