Experts of National Institute of Health and Family Welfare
(NIHFW) in first week of February released a report on the harmful effects of
gutka. It reported that 86 percent of the total oral cancer figure across the
world accounted to India. A total of 75000 to 80000 new cases of cancer were
diagnosed in India itself.
In case of India the maximum number of cancer was a result
of tobacco chewing, because Indians chew tobacco more than smoking. India
consists of 14 percent smoking tobacco users and 26 percent chewing tobacco
users.
As per the report tobacco is responsible for creating 1.5
lakh cancer patients, 4.2 million heart diseases and 3.7 million lung diseases
in India every year, making India an oral cancer capital. The statistics
released by the Health Ministry 65 percent cancers in India are caused due to
the use of tobacco. Other data released reveled that a third of the annual 5.6
million cancer deaths in India occurs due to the excessive use of tobacco. The
rate of oral cancer reported in India is about twice the global average.
In 2008 cancer was the cause of 7.6 million deaths
worldwide. In case of men from South-East Asia Region, oral and lung cancers
are the most prevalent ones and breast and cervical cancers are mainly found in
women.
The Government of India invests a sum of 300 billion rupees
per year approximately on treatment of tobacco related illness via both private
and public spending. It accounts to one-fourth of the total spending on health
issues in the country. About 2500 persons die every day in India due to
diseases related to tobacco.
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