In 10 years, the anti-smoking regulation will prevent 290,000 patients and 50,000 premature deaths

Angeles Cruz and Alejandro Alegria

Newspaper La Jornada
Wednesday, January 18, 2023, p. 13

In the next 10 years, 290,000 cases of diseases associated with tobacco consumption and the premature death of 50,000 people will be avoided due to the application of the provisions that guarantee open and closed public spaces free of smoke and the prohibition of advertising, including the exhibition of products at points of sale, assured Carlos Gámez, head of the National Office for Tobacco Control of the National Commission against Addictions (Conadic).

In a conference called by the Salud Justa civil association, he recognized that compliance will be progressive, and although there are not enough verifiers to guarantee it, the authorities take into account that almost 90 percent of the population does not smoke, so it is foreseeable that –as is already the case in some places, such as restaurants– the social sanction prevails against those who light a cigarette on the beaches, parks, stadiums and other areas of collective concurrence.

For its part, the Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce, Services and Tourism (Concanaco-Servytur) reported that the second and third district courts in administrative matters, specialized in economic competition, broadcasting and telecommunications, residing in Mexico City, They admitted on Monday three injunctions against the prohibition to display tobacco products in shops and points of sale, as well as for advertising the consumption of that merchandise.

Héctor Tejada, president of Concanaco-Servytur, expressed that this organization is in favor of the health of consumers. However, prohibiting the display of a product that is legal is excessive. It violates the principles of legality, such as the sale and marketing, which is permitted by lawhe claimed.

He argued that one million 500 thousand economic units, including shops, restaurants and hotels, will be affected. In addition, the prohibition to consume tobacco at a distance of less than 10 meters from restaurants affects the investments made in these establishments, although, he acknowledged, the annoyance caused by said habit is also understood.

Eduardo del Castillo, director of the Communication, Dialogue and Awareness Association (Codice), commented that in 15 states of the Republic there are laws for tobacco control, which –together with federal legislation on the matter– are complied with in 65 per percent on average compared to smoke-free spaces, which is partly explained because during the covid-19 health emergency that percentage dropped to 26 percent. Mexico City stands out, where the indicator is higher than 96 percent.

With the changes to the general law, which eliminates smoking areas and with the measures of the new regulation, which came into force last Sunday, the level of compliance will increase, while entities that do not have a local law are obliged to abide by the federal provisions.

Guadalupe Ponciano, a member of the Inter-Institutional Committee to Fight Smoking, stressed that one of the great benefits of the new rules is the protection of the best interests of children and adolescents, who will not be victims of the rampant marketing and greed from the tobacco industry, which seeks to induce them to smoke cigarettes or, more recently, vapers or electronic cigarettes.