04 April 2011
New Delhi, India
It is the most widespread form of tobacco use in India and responsible for India recording the highest incidence of mouth cancer
After coming down on smoking, the Health Ministry is planning measures to curb the use of chewing tobacco.
It is the most widespread form of tobacco use in India and responsible for India recording the highest incidence of mouth cancer, an official said.
The Union Health Ministry will soon call a meeting of state ministers to discuss the issue, he added.
Talking to reporters after a meeting the Health Ministry's Additional Secretary Keshav Desiraju said that consultations will be carried out to formulate policies to inform the masses on the ill-effects of tobacco.
"Most of our work so far has focused on smoking. The users of smokeless tobacco are usually from the weakest sections of the society, and different approach is needed to reach them," he said.
"We will discuss it with all state governments. Smokeless tobacco is being increasingly used in university campuses and urban areas," he said, reports IANS.
According to the Global Adult Tobacco Survey, out of 35 per cent adults using tobacco in India, 26 per cent adults use chewing tobacco in some form or another.
Studies have shown that 12.5 per cent of all teenagers use tobacco in some form or another. It has been found responsible for 50 per cent of all cancers in men and 25 per cent of all cancers in women, besides being responsible for 90 per cent of all oral cancers, according to a study by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
India has the world's highest incidence of mouth cancer in the world according to a study by the British Journal of Cancer.
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