Tobacco Industry Targets Women in Asia

A cigarette vendor in Manila sells a pack of 20 sticks for less than a dollar. Credit: Kara Santos/IPSBy Wendell Balderas and Mary AssuntaBANGKOK, Thailand, Mar 14 2019 (IPS) International Women’s Day on 8 March recognized and celebrated the progress women are making globally. The day also acknowledged the risks, exploitation and suffering many continue to endure. The Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) puts the spotlight on the tobacco industry’s marketing tactics targeting women and girls especially in Asia to market its deadly products. While smoking prevalence among females remains relatively low in Asia, smoking rates among adolescent girls in the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand however are higher than the rate among adult women respectively (9.1% vs 5.8%; 2.4% vs 1.4%; 5.2% vs 1.7%). Despite governments’ efforts to protect public health, tobacco use remains at epidemic proportions. This is no coincidence. The tobacco industry needs “replacement” customers to maintain and increase its profits, and women and girls are an important market segment which represent the largest product-marketing opportunity the tobacco industry exploits. Internal tobacco industry documents reveal that the tobacco industry has been notoriously targeting women and girls through their ads and novel products that promote social desirability, independence, sophistication, glamor, romance, and fun. Women and girls, especially in low and middle-income countries (LMICs), ar...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: Aid Development & Aid Economy & Trade Environment Featured Global Headlines Health TerraViva United Nations Women's Health Source Type: news