Tobacco-Related Chronic Illnesses: A Public Health Concern for Jamaica

Abstract

Background: Tobacco use is a leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality from non-communicable diseases. The objectives of the study were to determine the percentage of annual income used to purchase tobacco-related products and treat tobacco-related illnesses, and assess the characteristics of smokers and their awareness of the health-related risks of smoking. Method: Stratified and snowball sampling methods were used to obtain information (via a 17-item, close-ended questionnaire) from 85 adult respondents (49 males and 36 females). The instrument comprised of demographic characteristics, smoking behavioural/lifestyle, health, and micro socio-economics. Results: There were no significant differences between individuals who were affected by chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD) (14.1%) and cardiovascular disease (18.8%). It was found that respondents spend 30-39% of their annual income on tobacco-related products. Forty percent (40.0%) and 41.7% of respondents with lung cancer and COPD respectively spend more than 50% of their annual income to treat these diseases. The majority (80%) of those who continues to consume tobacco-related products were uncertain as to why they were doing it. Not all the smokers were aware of the dangers of tobacco consumption despite their level of education. Conclusion: The majority of the respondents who had tobacco-related illnesses such as lung cancer and COPD spend a significant amount of their income on their health care. Not all the smokers were aware of the dangers of tobacco consumption despite their level of education. This suggests the need for increase public awareness where both smokers and non smokers are being fully or adequately informed about the dangers or health risks of tobacco consumption.

Role of Tobacco Warning Labels in Informing Smokers about Risks of Smoking among Bus Drivers in Mangalore, India

“…Studies have traditionally reported better knowledge of risks with higher levels of education (Roychowdhury et al, 2005;Panda et al, 2012;Binnal et al, 2013). However the present study was in contrast to the study by Crawford et al, (2012) who reported no relation between awareness among smokers and their level of education.…”

“…However, knowledge regarding impotence associated with smoking was low, similar to findings of the present study. There is also considerable evidence which shows that individuals involved in smoking do not necessarily have sufficient knowledge regarding ill effects of tobacco usage (Hu et al, 2006;Crawford et al, 2012).…”

Increased chemoresistance via Snail-Raf kinase inhibitor protein signaling in colorectal cancer in response to a nicotine derivative

“…Tobacco use is a major public health issue worldwide [ 6 ]. The tobacco-related carcinogen nitrosamine, 4-methylnitrosamino-1-3-pyridyl-1-butanone (NNK), is a major component and the most potent carcinogen in cigarette smoke [ 7 ].…”

Geographic Distribution and Epidemiology of Lung Cancer During 2011 in Zhejiang Province of China

“…Although smoking, air pollution, exposure to carcinogens (such as asbestos), ionizing radiation etc., have been shown to be risk factors for lung cancer (Bhaskarapillai et al, 2012;Crawford et al, 2012;Zhang et al, 2012;Demirci et al, 2013;Babacan et al, 2014;Hajmanoochehri et al, 2014;Luqman et al, 2014), the pathogenic mechanism and the interactions between these risk factors are not entirely clear. Especially, the role of meteorological geographic factors in lung cancer is inconclusive.…”