The Human Rights of Children in Tobacco Control

Gispen, Marie Elske; Toebes, Brigit

doi:10.1353/hrq.2019.0029

Cited by 8 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…Human rights and the rights of the child, in particular, are a potent tool for achieving a smoke-free generation in Europe ), E enforce bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, R raise taxes on tobacco [2,55]. Given their vulnerability, children have, among others, the right to special protection against physical and moral dangers, such as those implied by tobacco, and the right to health, which must be guaranteed even in the private sphere.…”

Section: Tobacco As a Child Rights Issue In Europementioning

confidence: 99%

European progress in working towards a tobacco-free generation

2021

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Children have the right to grow up free from the hazards associated with tobacco smoking. Tobacco smoke exposure can have detrimental effects on children’s health and development, from before birth and beyond. As a result of effective tobacco control policies, European smoking rates are steadily decreasing among adults, as is the proportion of adolescents taking up smoking. Substantial variation however exists between countries, both in terms of smoking rates and regarding implementation, comprehensiveness and enforcement of policies to address smoking and second-hand smoke exposure. This is important because comprehensive tobacco control policies such as smoke-free legislation and tobacco taxation have extensively been shown to carry clear health benefits for both adults and children. Additional policies such as increasing the legal age to buy tobacco, reducing the number of outlets selling tobacco, banning tobacco display and advertising at the point-of-sale, and introducing plain packaging for tobacco products can help reduce smoking initiation by youth. At societal level, health professionals can play an important role in advocating for stronger policy measures, whereas they also clearly have a duty to address smoking and tobacco smoke exposure at the patient level. This includes providing cessation advise and referring to effective cessation services.Conclusion: Framing of tobacco exposure as a child right’s issue and of comprehensive tobacco control as a tool to work towards the ultimate goal of reaching a tobacco-free generation can help accelerate European progress to curb the tobacco epidemic. What is Known:• Tobacco exposure is associated with a range of adverse health effects among babies and children.• Comprehensive tobacco control policies helped bring down smoking rates in Europe and benefit child health. What is New:• Protecting the rights and health of children provides a strong starting point for tobacco control advocacy.• The tobacco-free generation concept helps policy-makers set clear goals for protecting future generations from tobacco-associated harms.

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Section: Tobacco As a Child Rights Issue In Europementioning

confidence: 99%

European progress in working towards a tobacco-free generation

2021

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“…More efforts can be made to identify so-called 'human rights based approaches' toward reducing risk factors [33]. Specifically, a 'child rights' approach gives guidance into how the best interests of children can be protected in the context of the mentioned risk factors [44].…”

Section: Law As a Tool To Reduce Risk Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A renewed call for transdisciplinary action on NCDs

Toebes

Hesselman

Mierau

et al. 2020

BMC Int Health Hum Rights

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Notwithstanding COVID-19, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) will be the leading cause of death in every region in the world by 2030. This contribution, which forms an introduction to our collection of articles in this journal, identifies elements for a transdisciplinary research agenda between law, public health, health economics and international relations aimed at designing concrete interventions to curb the NCD pandemic, both globally and domestically.

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“…These human rights dimensions of NCD policy are especially relevant for children, who are particularly vulnerable when it comes to exposure to unhealthy products, including tobacco, alcohol, and unhealthy diets. Children are more vulnerable to the negative effects of NCD risk factors, and, due to their ongoing physiological and cognitive development, have limited ability to decide what is in their own best interests (Gispen and Toebes 2019). Addressing the vulnerability of children, the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) emphasizes that states should regulate the marketing of foods that are: high in fat, sugar, or salt; energy-dense; or micronutrient-poor, in addition to drinks containing high levels of caffeine (CRC 2013).…”

Section: A Implementing and Monitoring Human Rights In The Ncd Responsementioning

confidence: 99%