MARAWI CITY, Lanao del Sur, June 23 (PIA) --- The Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) warned the public anew on the harmful effects of smoking.
“Smoking can cause a lot of diseases because a cigarette stick has over 4,000 chemicals in it,” said IPHO chief Dr. Alinader Minalang.
He said cigarette smoking causes, among others, cancers of the lung, skin and throat. It can also lead to higher healthcare expenses and productivity loss due to smoking-attributable diseases or deaths.
Experts say that ten Filipinos die every hour from smoking-related illnesses.
“That is why it is important to raise public awareness on the bad effects of smoking to encourage smokers to give it up,” Minalang said.
The IPHO chief meanwhile underscored the efforts of the government to discourage smoking.
He said the imposition of sin tax, which made cigarettes expensive, is proving to be effective because smokers now realized that they are losing big portions of their income to cigarettes.
Minalang is also optimistic that legislators will pass the law on graphic health warnings in cigarette packs. (APB/PIA-10)
No comments