09/17/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/17/2024 08:14
Every year in the EU, 700,000 persons lose their lives due to tobacco consumption, among which tens of thousands are due to second-hand smoke. The proposed revision to the Council Recommendation on smoke-free environments is a direct bid to help better protect people from the effects of second-hand smoke and aerosols. It also marks another step forward in the EU's overall efforts to de-normalise the use of tobacco and emerging products, fight nicotine addiction, and improve preventive health.
The revision calls on EU countries to:
Europe's Beating Cancer Plan sets the goal of creating a 'Tobacco-Free Generation' by 2040, where less than 5% of the population uses tobacco. Deaths and other health indicators, such as heart attacks in the general population and improvements to respiratory health, have improved thanks to smoke-free environments. The Council Recommendation on smoke-free environments was adopted in 2009 and called on EU countries:
Furthermore, the current revision encourages EU countries to exchange best practices and strengthen international cooperation to maximise the impact of the measures taken across the EU.
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