India witnessed 383,000 tobacco deaths last year: report

[Robert Weissman <rob@essential.org>]

India witnessed 383,000 tobacco deaths last year: report

by Sunday Observer - news
INDIA;
Date: Sunday, 5/16/99

NEW DELHI, May 11 (PTI) - India witnessed 383,000 tobacco deaths last year
which is 66 per cent of all tobacco deaths in South-East Asia, according
to the World Health report, 1999. 

The deaths included 51,000 females, says the report released by the World
Health Organisation (WHO) at Geneva on Tuesday. 

China recorded the maximum 913,000 tobacco deaths in 1998 -- 67 per cent
of all tobacco deaths in Europe in that year. 

Deaths of males due to tobacco was much higher worldwide compared to that
of females. The total female death count was about one-fourth of that of
males. 

Worldwide tobacco deaths per year would rise 2.5 times from about four
million last year to about ten million in 2030 - more than the total
deaths per year from malaria, tuberculosis and major childhood ailments.
seventy per cent of these deaths will be in the developing world. 

This would result in about 450 million deaths worldwide in the first half
of the next century, half of which will occur in the 35-69 years age
group, the report says. 

More women in the near future will be affected by tobacco-related diseases
which would rapidly engulf more developing countries. 

Last year's figures show about half of the tobacco deaths in rich European
countries comprise that of women.