Wellness Status: Keeping Track and Improving - Gerlach: Around 16,000 deaths annually can be attributed to tobacco use.
Nearly 16,000 people in Bavaria pass away annually because of smoking-connected reasons, as per Bavaria's Health Minister Judith Gerlach. "Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-induced deaths among men in Bavaria, and the second most frequent one among women," the CSU politician mentioned on Thursday. "Approximately 80% of lung cancer cases stem from smoking." She put an accent on the necessity of ceasing the addiction to tobacco and early cancer prevention in schools.
Back in 2020, the former Bavarian Health Minister Melanie Huml (also CSU) stated that at least 15,000 individuals were dying in Bavaria due to smoking. The figures are obtained from the Tobacco Atlas 2020 provided by the Cancer Research Center.
The percentage of smokers and cigarette users among the Bavarian population has slightly grown lately, as per the Health Ministry. The proportion of smokers in Bavaria grew from 21% in 2018 to 22% in 2021, while the percentage of female smokers rose from 15% in 2018 to 16% in 2021. Previously, the rate was significantly lower: for instance, in 2012, 28.8% of males and 20.8% of females in Bavaria smoked.
On Thursday, LGL President Christian Weidner cautioned against the dangers of smoking alternatives like water pipes or e-cigarettes. Smoking water pipes releases hazardous substances such as fine dust, nicotine, the cancer-inducing cadmium, or benzene into the air. Electronic cigarettes' vapor consists of substances that irritate the airways, and in most cases, include the addictive substance nicotine, along with carcinogenic compounds at diverse levels. "The superior choice ultimately is not to smoke at all," Weidner underlined.
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- Judith Gerlach echoed concerns about tobacco consumption on World No Tobacco Day, emphasizing its contribution to 16,000 annual deaths in Bavaria.
- Gerlach highlighted how diseases like lung cancer, often linked to smoking, claim the lives of 80% of lung cancer patients in Bavaria, primarily affecting men.
- The president of LGL, Christian Weidner, warned about the risks associated with smoking alternatives such as water pipes and e-cigarettes, which release harmful substances and should ideally be avoided.
- Gerlach, during her address, highlighted the importance of shedding the tobacco addiction and implementing early cancer prevention programs, particularly in schools.
- As mentioned by Gerlach, the Tobacco Atlas 2020 has reported that at least 16,000 individuals die each year in Bavaria as a result of tobacco-related diseases, as was also acknowledged by her predecessor Melanie Huml.
- Despite a decrease in smokers and cigarette users in past years, the CSU politician Gerlach noted that the trend of tobacco consumption in Bavaria has recently seen a slight increase, with women and men both participating, as per data from the Health Ministry.
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