Russian women smoke more than in Soviet period
Russian Health Minister view continuously growing rate of smokers with great concern. According to recent studies, during post-soviet period number of smokers has increased enormously.
For example in 1992, 7% of women used to smoke, but in 2003 this percentage grew to 15%. For men percentage grew from 57% to 63%.
The researches said that this blooming is explained by immense investments of transnational tobacco companies in Russian tobacco market.
According to the records, between 1992 and 2000, tobacco companies such as Philip Morris, British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco International invested approximately US$1.7 billion in order to control near 60 per cent share of the privatized Russian tobacco market.
If during Communist period tobacco ads haven’t existed at all, in 1990 almost half of all billboards in Moscow and three quarters of plastic bags in Russia ads are about tobacco products.
“There can be no doubt that the marketing tactics of Philip Morris, British American Tobacco and the like directly underpin this massive increase in smoking that spells disaster for health in Russia,” said Dr Anna Gilmore from the School for Health at the University of Bath.
Dr Anna Gilmore added that transnational tobacco companies have focused on promoting smoking as a part of the new “western lifestyle”.
“They aggressively targeted women, young people and those living in cities with their marketing and distribution strategies. This is now directly reflected in the smoking patterns we are seeing. Until this point women in Russia had simply not smoked.
Tobacco smoking is responsible for death of near half of men making the Russian demographic crisis far worse.
“The smoking epidemic in women is at a much earlier stage, but with this rapid increase, is set to catch up fast.
Dr Gilmore said that government ought to take into consideration this problem, because cigarettes kill one in every two smokers.
On the 10th January 2008 government decided to make a draft law that will limit tobacco usage that after ought to be discussed at the State Duma.
