| Azlan Othman |

TWENTY per cent or 50,000-60,000 Bruneians aged between 18 and 69 are smokers of which 36.3 per cent are males and 3.7 per cent females, according to the Cross-sectional STEPwise Approach to Surveillance (STEPS) Population Survey of Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs) 2016 survey.

Meanwhile, based on the Global School Health Survey (GSHS) survey of 2014, about 11 per cent or about 3,800 teenagers aged 13-17 are smokers, of which 17.8 per cent are among male adolescents and 5.5 per cent are female adolescents.

This was highlighted by Minister of Health Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Isham bin Haji Jaafar at the World No Tobacco Day 2019 which falls every May 31.

Tobacco threatens health and life not only among its users but also those exposed to secondhand smoke.

Hazardous chemicals contained in a cigarette may result in hundreds of toxins entering the smokers’ lungs. Globally, the impact of tobacco use causes about eight million deaths a year, which is one death in four seconds.

Of the total figures, about one million deaths are due to exposure to passive cigarette smoke.

Threats to health, especially the lungs caused by tobacco use are increasingly worrying from year to year.

Furthermore, lung disease is among the major cause of death where the use of tobacco and exposure to passive smoking is a major risk factor for the disease.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation and other global partners celebrate World No Tobacco Day this year with the theme ‘Tobacco and Lung Health’.

The theme focusses on raising public awareness on the negative effects of tobacco use that can affect the health of the lungs such as lung cancer and chronic respiratory illness. At the same time, this celebration is also expected to enhance the public knowledge of lung function which plays an important role in a person’s health and well-being.

The findings from both surveys show that about 50,000 to 60,000 people in Brunei Darussalam are smokers where they are at high risk of lung disease such as lung cancer, chronic respiratory illness, asthma and Tuberculosis (TB) infection.

The risk of chronic respiratory illness is higher for those who smoke from adolescence as their lung development and function have been affected since the beginning.

What is more alarming is that the effects of smoking can also affect the health of people around smokers who are exposed to cigarette smoke or passive smokers. According to the GSHS 2014 survey, about 40 per cent of adolescents aged 13-17 are exposed to passive smoke and one in every three adolescents has parents or guardians who use tobacco products.

Exposure to passive cigarette smoke increases the risk of each individual getting lung cancer. In 2017, lung cancer was the leading cause of cancer deaths in Brunei Darussalam where almost 16 per cent of total deaths are due to cancer.

With regard to latent TB infection with active TB infection, in 2017 alone, 240 new TB cases have been reported.

Exposure to passive smoking also leads to chronic respiratory illness for people who have been exposed to passive smoking since childhood, and they often have pulmonary infections and serious respiratory problems such as asthma.

About eight per cent of all deaths in 2017 were due to chronic respiratory illness, including bronchitis and asthma.

In efforts to reduce and control the use of tobacco in Brunei Darussalam, the Ministry of Health (MoH) with other government sectors under the Multisectoral Task Force on Health has implemented various initiatives to reduce tobacco use.

These include anti-tobacco activities such as road shows, exhibitions and health talks; incorporating anti-tobacco curri-culum into Years 6 and 8 of the students curriculum; make anti-tobacco videos in cinemas; compliance to smoke-free law and so on. All these initiatives are constantly monitored to ensure that the objectives set are met.

The MoH has provided a Smoking Cessation Clinic (KBM) service at health centres in each district to provide counselling and pharmacotherapeutic assistance such as nicotine replacement equipment to those who need it, to help smokers willing to quit.

“For every successful individual who quit smoking, the improvement of his/her health can be seen and perceived and the risk of developing lung cancer will also decrease. According to the study, after three months of quitting smoking, the lung function improves and gets better.

“After eight months, cough and shortness of breath will decrease. After 10 years, the risk of lung cancer risk decreases to half compared to smokers while the risk of mouth cancer, throat, esophagus, bladder, cervix and pancreas will also decrease.

“We in Brunei Darussalam are grateful for having the quality of air that is usually free from any pollution and toxins. Let us together fight for our right to enjoy air that is free from pollution of cigarette smoke for the sake of health and well-being of the children, the family and the general society.

“Therefore, in conjunction with the World Tobacco Day celebration this year, I urge all smokers in Brunei Darussalam to take good care of this blessed and glorious month of Ramadhan to decide to quit smoking by making this month an opportunity and commitment to make change not only for the sake of oneself but also for the sake of family and loved ones. Let us work together to make Brunei Darussalam healthy and free of tobacco and cigarette smoke,” the minister said in his message.