Graphic warnings on cigarette packs to be changed this year

Graphic warnings on cigarette packs will be changed by cigarette manufacturers within the year, the regional Department of Health (DOH-7) said over the weekend.

Ligaya Moneva, DOH-7 education officer,  said cigarette manufacturers asked the DOH-7 to give them time to reproduce new graphic warnings on their products.

She said the DOH-7 will continue the campaign to discourage smoking by pointing out the dangerous effects of prolonged consumption of cigarettes.

Based on a study conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Department of Health (DOH), 80 percent of tobacco-related ailments are the leading cause of mortality in the country.

These include cardiovascular diseases, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes, hypertension and cancer.

She said 24 Filipinos die from tobacco-related ailments every hour, 240 in a day and 88,000 Filipinos in a year.

Globally, Moneva said there are nearly six million smokers who die in a year while more than 600,000 second-hand smokers or those who inhale the smoke of tobacco products die in a year.

She also discouraged fathers and grandfathers from asking their children to buy cigarettes in sari-sari stores.

She said this is where cigarette addiction starts.

Moneva also called on smokers to be responsible and refrain from smoking in public places.

Republic Act 9211, or the Tobacco Regulation Act of 2003, provides protection for the public from cigarette smoke.

Moneva cited a memorandum of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) prohibits smoking in all public utility vehicles (PUV) and terminals.

Violators will be fined P500 to P10,000 and will no longer be allowed to use public transportation.

The Civil Service Commission (CSC) has also issued memorandum circular no. 17, which prohibits smoking in all public offices.