Dr Sushil Kumar Sharma
Each year on May 31, the World Health Organization (WHO) marks World No Tobacco Day to raise awareness of the health threats posed by tobacco use and to encourage policies that reduce tobacco consumption. In 2025, the theme is a bold one: “Unmasking the Appeal: Exposing Industry Tactics on Tobacco and Nicotine Products.”
This year’s campaign aims to confront the tobacco and nicotine industries’ deliberate and deceptive strategies that continue to target young people, foster addiction, and undermine public health efforts.
A Modern Epidemic: New Faces of Old Addictions
Despite decades of evidence about the dangers of tobacco, the industry continues to evolve. Traditional cigarettes are now accompanied by e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products, nicotine pouches, and a growing range of flavored and discreet nicotine delivery systems. These products are aggressively marketed as “safer,” “cleaner,” or “modern,” despite mounting evidence of their harmful effects. The tobacco industry has shifted its image. Once associated with smoky rooms and aging users, it now brands itself as tech-savvy, youth-oriented, and even socially responsible. But beneath the rebranding lies the same goal – to hook the next generation on nicotine.
Toxic Substances in Tobacco
Tobacco smoke contains hundreds of harmful substances. Three key toxins include:
* Tar, which coats the lungs and causes cancer and respiratory diseases.
* Nicotine, a highly addictive chemical that contributes to heart disease.
* Carbon monoxide, which reduces oxygen in the bloodstream and strains the cardiovascular system.
Additional toxins such as formaldehyde, ammonia, and benzene further increase the risk of diseases including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), stroke, and multiple cancers.
A Global Health Crisis
Tobacco use remains one of the deadliest public health challenges, killing over eight million people annually. Of these, more than seven million are from direct tobacco use and around 1.2 million from second-hand smoke exposure. Despite widespread awareness campaigns, tobacco still claims one life every four seconds. The industry continues to thrive by targeting vulnerable populations, especially youth, through digital marketing and deceptive strategies. The major health risks include:
* Heart disease and stroke
* Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
* Lung, mouth, throat, and other cancers
* Vascular disorders and weakened immunity
An Overlooked Environmental Disaster
While health harms of tobacco are well-documented, its environmental impact is often ignored. The entire tobacco lifecycle – from cultivation to waste – causes extensive environmental damage. Tobacco farming alone consumes more than 3.5 million hectares of land annually, leading to deforestation, soil degradation, and food insecurity. Heavy use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers pollutes water sources and erodes soil quality, making the land less suitable for food production. Tobacco cultivation contributes to the loss of 200,000 hectares of forest each year.
The environmental impact extends beyond farming. Cigarette manufacturing releases harmful chemicals into the air and uses significant energy and water resources. Discarded cigarette butts – the most littered item globally – contain micro plastics and toxic substances, polluting water bodies and harming marine life.
Targeting Youth: A Calculated Strategy
Globally, millions of adolescents aged 13 to 15 are using tobacco or nicotine products. This is no accident. The industry spends billions annually on targeted marketing campaigns, sponsorship deals, and online content designed to appeal to young audiences.
Tactics include:
* Flavored products such as bubblegum, mint, and mango, designed to mask the harshness of nicotine.
* Social media influencers promoting e-cigarettes without clear disclosure.
* Sleek product designs resembling USB sticks or cosmetics to evade detection.
* Lifestyle branding that links nicotine use to independence, rebellion, or popularity.
* Lobbying against regulation, particularly restrictions on advertising, sales, and packaging.
By exploiting legal loopholes and the speed of digital media, tobacco companies continue to reach children and teens despite regulatory frameworks.
The Truth about “Safer” Alternatives
While some alternatives like e-cigarettes are promoted as harm reduction tools for adult smokers, their aggressive marketing to non-smokers and youth undermines this intention. Nicotine remains highly addictive, and its effects on the developing brain are profound – impairing attention, learning, mood, and impulse control.
Moreover, the long-term health impacts of newer products are still emerging. Initial studies show damage to lung tissue, cardiovascular strain, and the presence of toxic substances. These products are not risk-free, and their widespread uptake threatens to reverse progress in reducing tobacco-related disease.
The Power of Quitting
Quitting tobacco brings immediate and long-term health benefits.
* Within 20 minutes, your heart rate and blood pressure drop.
* 12 hours, the carbon monoxide level in your blood drops to normal.
* 2-12 weeks, your circulation improves and your lung function increases.
* 1-9 months, coughing and shortness of breath decrease.
* 1 year, your risk of coronary heart disease is about half that of a smoker’s.
* 5 years, your stroke risk is reduced to that of a nonsmoker 5 to 15 years after quitting.
* 10 years, your risk of lung cancer falls to about half that of a smoker and your risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, cervix, and pancreas decreases.
? 15 years, the risk of coronary heart disease is that of a nonsmoker’s.
A Call to Action
World No Tobacco Day 2025 urges global citizens, health professionals, and policymakers to recognize the environmental devastation caused by tobacco alongside its human toll.
Individuals can:
* Quit tobacco and seek support to do so.
* Educate others about the environmental and health impacts.
* Dispose of tobacco products responsibly.
Governments should:
* Implement strict regulations on tobacco marketing, especially on digital platforms.
* Support farmers in transitioning to sustainable crops.
* Hold tobacco companies accountable for environmental damage.
* Increase taxes and strengthen smoke-free laws.
Conclusion
This year’s theme – unmasking the Appeal – reminds us that the tobacco and nicotine industries do not sell freedom, style, or stress relief. They sell addiction, illness, and early death, packaged in distraction and disguise. Tobacco is not only a health hazard – it is an environmental pollutant, an economic burden, and a social injustice.
As we mark World No Tobacco Day 2025, let us commit to protecting our youth, exposing deception, and breaking the cycle of addiction that the industry so desperately wants to sustain and to protect both human life and the planet. Reducing tobacco use is no longer just a medical priority – it is an environmental necessity.
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