WARNING: Cigarettes smoking may not allow you to rule until 90-year-oldPotential cigarette label warning image in Cambodia
(AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Cambodians spend $70 million in cigarettes per year
05 May 2007
By Kessor Ranya Radio Free Asia
Translated from Khmer by Socheata
A group of medical experts from the Cambodian Ministry of Health and the World health Organization (WHO) in Cambodia said that Cambodians are spending upward of $70 million per year on cigarettes and tobacco.
Dr Yil Daravuth, an official of the Ministry of Health and who is in charge of the program “the start of no cigarette smoke,” gave details on this huge expense: “According to research by the National Statistics Institute in cooperation with the Khmer Lady organization, it was found that, in average, Cambodians spend 14,000 riels (~$3.50) per month to buy cigarettes. For the entire population of 13 million, in total, each year, our people are burning $70 million in money on cigarettes and tobacco…”
Dr Yil Daravuth added that in addition to the loss of several millions in fund uselessly, cigarettes and tobacco are also the sources of several illnesses, such as high blood pressure, heart ailments, lung diseases, and stokes.
Dr Sung Vinatak, director of the “tobacco or health” program of the health improvement department of the Ministry of Health, provided detail on the negative impact of tobacco chewing on health: tobacco is one cause of the short life span.
Dr Sung Vinatak said: “If a person smokes more than one pack of cigarettes per day, for a period of 5 to 10 years, that person will shorten his/her lifespan by 10 to 20 years. If a person smokes and lives until 80 or 90-year-old, without smoking, that person would live even longer than that. In general, it has been shown that cigarette smoking shortens lifespan.”
Dr Yil Daravuth indicated that the current rate of smokers in Cambodia is 28%, one of the highest rates in the world. “The statistics show that 54% of men and 6% of women over 20-year-old are smokers, 11% of children between the age of 13 to 15 are smoking. In total, the rate of smokers is 28%, i.e. 2.6 million of our population are smokers, this is a very large number for Cambodia.”
According to statistics by the WHO and the Ministry of Health, about 6,000 Cambodians die from smoking each year.
Dr Yil Daravuth, an official of the Ministry of Health and who is in charge of the program “the start of no cigarette smoke,” gave details on this huge expense: “According to research by the National Statistics Institute in cooperation with the Khmer Lady organization, it was found that, in average, Cambodians spend 14,000 riels (~$3.50) per month to buy cigarettes. For the entire population of 13 million, in total, each year, our people are burning $70 million in money on cigarettes and tobacco…”
Dr Yil Daravuth added that in addition to the loss of several millions in fund uselessly, cigarettes and tobacco are also the sources of several illnesses, such as high blood pressure, heart ailments, lung diseases, and stokes.
Dr Sung Vinatak, director of the “tobacco or health” program of the health improvement department of the Ministry of Health, provided detail on the negative impact of tobacco chewing on health: tobacco is one cause of the short life span.
Dr Sung Vinatak said: “If a person smokes more than one pack of cigarettes per day, for a period of 5 to 10 years, that person will shorten his/her lifespan by 10 to 20 years. If a person smokes and lives until 80 or 90-year-old, without smoking, that person would live even longer than that. In general, it has been shown that cigarette smoking shortens lifespan.”
Dr Yil Daravuth indicated that the current rate of smokers in Cambodia is 28%, one of the highest rates in the world. “The statistics show that 54% of men and 6% of women over 20-year-old are smokers, 11% of children between the age of 13 to 15 are smoking. In total, the rate of smokers is 28%, i.e. 2.6 million of our population are smokers, this is a very large number for Cambodia.”
According to statistics by the WHO and the Ministry of Health, about 6,000 Cambodians die from smoking each year.
