Salama stressed that cigarettes are the cause of multidimensional problems at the global level, not only in the health sector but also bring a negative impact on socio-economy and culture.
According to Salama, ample research has shown the negative impact of cigarettes on health issues, including physical and mental disorders, such as anxiety and depression. Apart from the health sector, smoking also causes economic problems.
Studies from the research also showed that cigarettes are the second most common product consumed by poor families, Salama added.
Another research states that by reducing cigarette spending by 1%, poverty will also be reduced by 6%.
In addition, Salama highlighted that smoking is one of the causes of stunting in children and also resulted in motoric, developmental, and mental disorders.
She cautioned that mental disorders in children can also disrupt their concentration and cause a decline in their performance in school.
This was caused by around seven thousand dangerous substances contained in cigarettes, especially nicotine, which causes addiction; tar that triggers cancer in the body; and carbon monoxide that impedes the blood's ability to carry oxygen to body tissues and key organs, she explained.
Hence, Salama urged the public to stop and avoid smoking.
She drew attention to some efforts made to reduce the number of smokers by increasing cigarette excise prices and limiting cigarette advertising. For this reason, she proposed to relevant stakeholders to tighten regulations regarding cigarette advertising.
In 2022, Indonesia ranked first in the world in terms of the prevalence of adult male smokers, which was recorded at 71.3%. Meanwhile, the prevalence of adult smokers in Indonesia stood at 37.6%, was the fifth highest in the world.
