Cambodia: ADRA and Key Policymakers Call for Greater Tobacco Control

Shouldn't the example be set by the top? (Photo: AP)

31 Mar 2010
Source: ADRA

SILVER SPRING, Md.--Strong tobacco control laws could be implemented in Cambodia as a result of ongoing advocacy efforts led by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) and other partnering organizations, the agency reported.

In early March, representatives from the National Assembly, the Council of Ministers, the Cambodian Inter-Ministerial Committee for Tobacco Control, and other key leaders met with ADRA and partnering non-governmental organizations during an ADRA-sponsored two-day event to discuss a draft law on tobacco control. During the meetings, participants agreed to work toward the creation of six key strategies that once implemented will enable effective tobacco control throughout the country.

These recommendations, which are expected to be distributed among key government stakeholders, would fulfill the commitment to the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which the Cambodian government ratified in 2005, and include policies that will establish laws and legitimate standardized documents to reduce tobacco consumption in the country, strengthen existing tobacco control mechanisms and methods, and install a comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising.

According to ADRA Cambodia, these recommendations and the resulting commitment to them by government parties signify a "pivotal" point in the progress of tobacco control law in Cambodia.

"We are very proud to see the Cambodian government and the National Assembly commit to these strategies," said Mark Schwisow, country director for ADRA Cambodia. "We and our partners have worked very hard to push for the tobacco control law to pass, and we are happy to have the Council of Ministers and other influential lawmakers calling for greater tobacco control measures themselves."

The meetings, held in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, were designed to increase awareness and the support for a stronger anti-smoking law in a country where nearly half of all men and more than 20 percent of women use tobacco products, according to a 2005 ADRA-WHO national prevalence survey. It also aimed to encourage representatives from the Council of Ministers to support the current draft law on tobacco control, leading to ratification by the National Parliament, which has faced numerous delays and obstacles in recent years.

"ADRA Cambodia has been working for more than 10 years to reduce tobacco consumption within Cambodia," added Schwisow. "However, additional political will is needed from key government officials in order to pass a comprehensive national law on tobacco control in Cambodia."

ADRA organized the event through a partnership with MEDiCAM, a membership organization of non-governmental organizations in Cambodia's Health Sector, and Cambodia Movement for Health (CMH), with technical support provided by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Current program funding, including this event, is supported by ADRA Canada in collaboration with Canadian International Development Agency CIDA.

ADRA has been working to increase tobacco control in Cambodia since 1996, to raise awareness of the dangers of tobacco consumption and reduce smoking prevalence throughout the country.

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ADRA is a non-governmental organization present in 125 countries providing sustainable community development and disaster relief without regard to political or religious association, age, gender, race or ethnicity.

For more information about ADRA, visit www.adra.org.

Cigarettes kill, but don't tell him...

Taking a deadly puff? (Photo: Reuters)

Cigarettes kill, but don't tell smokers?

Wed Dec 9, 2009

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Cigarette pack warnings that remind smokers of the fatal consequences of their habit may actually make them smoke more as a way to cope with the inevitability of death, according to researchers.

A small study by psychologists from the United States, Switzerland and Germany showed that warnings unrelated to death, such as "smoking makes you unattractive" or "smoking brings you and the people around you severe damage," were more effective in changing smokers' attitudes toward their habit.

This was especially the case in people who smoked to boost their self-esteem, such as youth who took up the habit to impress or fit in with their peers and others who thought smoking increased their social value, the researchers said.

"In general, when smokers are faced with death-related anti-smoking messages on cigarette packs, they produce active coping attempts as reflected in their willingness to continue the risky smoking behavior," the study said.

"To succeed with anti-smoking messages on cigarette packs one has to take into account that considering their death may make people smoke."

The study was based on 39 psychology students, aged between 17 and 41, who said they were smokers.

Participants filled in a questionnaire to determine how much their smoking was based on self-esteem, were then shown cigarette packs with different warnings on them, and then after a 15-minute delay, the students were asked more questions about their smoking behavior that included if they intended to quit.

"One the one hand, death-related warnings were not effective and even ironically caused more positive smoking attitudes among smokers who based their self-esteem on smoking," the study said.

"On the other hand, warning messages that were unrelated to death effectively reduced smoking attitudes the more recipients based their self-esteem on smoking."

The researchers said this finding can be explained by the fact that warnings such as "smoking makes you unattractive" may be particularly threatening to people who believe that smoking makes them feel valued by others or boosts their self-image.

The study was published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.

(Writing by Miral Fahmy; Editing by Alex Richardson)

Doctor Urges Cambodian Smokers to Quit [... except for the one shown in the photo?]

By Nuch Sarita, VOA Khmer
Washington
17 January 2008

As many as 60 percent of urban Cambodians and more than 80 percent of rural villagers smoke, putting them at high risk of lung cancer, a doctor said Thursday.

Though the numbers may be decreasing in recent years thanks to anti-smoking campaigns, many people continue to smoke.

The best way to reduce health risks is to quit smoking, said Dr. Taing Tek Hong, as a guest on “Hello VOA.”

“Smoking cigarettes can cause bronchitis, heart disease, cancer of the mouth,” he said.

Cambodians can find help quitting smoking by using nicotine gum or patches, or through the use of bupropion, available in the brand-name medication Zyban, Taing Tek Hong said.

Bupropion is a commonly used anti-depressant and should be available in Cambodia, he said.

Cambodians should also consider the healthcare costs of smoking, the doctor said.

For example, a non-smoker and smoker who enter the hospital with similar lung problems will undergo different tests—to greater cost for the smoker.

“The symptoms of tuberculosis and lung cancer are very similar,” Taing Tek Hong said. “But if the smoker ends up in the hospital…his treatment will cost more money, because [the hospital] will do a CAT scan, which is expensive.”