World No Tobacco Day: when is the WHO campaign, and why it exists as vaping debate continues

World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) falls annually to raise public awareness of the dangers of using tobacco, the business practices of tobacco companies and what the World Health Organisation (WHO) is doing to fight against the use of tobacco. In recent years, there has also been a rise in vaping and e-cigarettes which have sparked a debate if the effects of that are as harmful as smoking. 

We've covered some of the expert views regarding vaping in the past, with Chemist Click pharmacist Abbas Kanani saying if the end goal of quitting smoking is to curb a nicotine addiction, then vaping may not be for you.

However, WNTD is one of 11 official global public health days campaigned by the WHO and was created in 1987 to draw attention and awareness of the preventable diseases tobacco can specifically cause. The idea behind each theme is to create a unified global message, and the WHO often gives out rewards to those who have made significant contributions to those reducing tobacco consumption. 

This is a global event, and it is observed around the world. This campaign has been met with some resistance, however, as many people see this day as a challenge to their individual freedom and choice. So when is World No Tobacco Day and what impact has it had? This is what you need to know. 

When is World No Tobacco Day and what is the theme?

WNTD falls on 31 May every year to raise awareness of the dangers of tobacco and what people can do to claim their right to health and healthy living in the current tobacco epidemic. This day also focuses on how to protect future generations, by informing and raising awareness of the preventable death and diseases it causes. 

Created in 1987, the Member States of the WHO called for 7 April 1988 to be a “world no smoking day” but in 1988, a new resolution was passed to call for the celebration of World No Tobacco Day every 31 May. 

This year’s theme is “We need food, not tobacco”. The idea behind this is to accentuate how tobacco growing harms the environment, and the health of farmers as well as ourselves. WHO states the tobacco industry interferes with attempts to substitute tobacco growing, which is contributing to the global food crisis. This year’s campaign objectives are: 

• Mobilise governments to end subsidies on tobacco growing and use of savings for crop substitution programmes that support farmers to switch and improve food security and nutrition.
• Raise awareness in tobacco farming communities about the benefits of moving away from tobacco and growing sustainable crops;
• Support efforts to combat desertification and environmental degradation by decreasing tobacco farming;
• Expose industry efforts to obstruct sustainable livelihoods work.

What are the dangers of tobacco? 

A new WHO report, of “Grow food, not tobacco” looks into how tobacco farming is reducing space for more sustainable crops for farmers, communities, economies and the environment. It also looks into how the tobacco industry is trapping farmers in a life of debt. Tobacco farming is also giving diseases to the farmers, and seeing over one million child labourers miss out on an education. 

Cancer Research UK suggests smoking can cause at least 15 types of cancer, and that tobacco is the largest preventable cause of cancer and death in the UK. It is responsible for around 125,000 deaths in the UK, in 2019. Worldwide, tobacco’s negative health effects lead to around eight million deaths and around 1.2 million deaths from secondhand smoke. 

World No Tobacco Day and vaping 

With vaping becoming a new trend, the latest report from the BBC shows lab tests have revealed the majority of vapes confiscated from students at Baxter College in Kidderminster were illegal and unregulated, and contained high levels of lead, nickel and chromium - and some had higher levels of dangerous carbonyls than some cigarettes.

Yesterday (30 May), the government announced a crackdown on vape marketing, as data from NHS Digital revealed the number of young people vaping had increased. According to the WHO, lead exposure can affect brain development, resulting in reduced intelligence quotient (IQ), behavioural changes such as reduced attention span and increased antisocial behaviour. Physically, lead exposure can also cause anaemia, hypertension, kidney disease, and impact the immune system.