Note: World Lung Foundation united with The Union North America. From January 2016, the combined organization is known as “Vital Strategies.”
(New Delhi, India and New York, United States) ––The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, today launched a powerful new anti-tobacco mass media campaign called Sunita, designed to warn people about the devastating health harms of using smokeless tobacco. The 30-second advertisement has been translated into 17 languages and will run for five weeks nationally on all government and private TV and radio channels in every State, through the National Tobacco Control Program (NTCP). Sunita is also one of the anti-tobacco ads that will be screened in cinemas and theatres under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) Film Rule.
Sunita’s story
The campaign shows the personal testimony of Sunita Tomar, a 27-year old wife and mother. She developed oral cancer after using smokeless tobacco. Sunita lives in a small town in Madhya Pradesh with her husband, a truck driver, her 12- and 13-year old sons, and her parents-in-law. The ad shows Sunita before and after an operation to remove the cancerous growth and a part of her mouth. She describes how happy she was before tobacco took its terrible toll on her health and her appearance and how she never expected to develop oral cancer. The ad closes with a warning against using tobacco. This Public Service Announcement (PSA) was developed by the Ministry of Health with technical assistance from World Lung Foundation.
Dr. Harshvardhan, the Honourable Union Health Minister, while launching the campaign, said: “Every minute we are losing precious lives due to tobacco consumption. As a doctor and the union health minister I urge people to understand that any form of tobacco consumption, bidi, guthka, khaini etc. is extremely hazardous to health and can directly or indirectly lead to death. The tobacco lobby in India is very strong, and through this campaign we want to reach out to our country’s children, youth and women and warn them about the health and economic impact of using tobacco.”
In view of this, Dr. Harshvardhan further requested Chief Ministers of various states to pass necessary order/notification under Regulation 2.3.4 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 to “implement the ban on all forms of processed/flavoured/scented chewing tobacco, whether going by the name or form of gutka, zarda etc.”
“Sunita’s experience demonstrates that there is a real need for this campaign, as many people aren’t aware of the real dangers of smokeless tobacco and never think they might develop oral cancer as a result of their habit. Tobacco does not discriminate; its use can destroy the health and happiness of anyone, even a young woman with significant family responsibilities, like Sunita. We are sure that people across India will relate to Sunita’s story and realise it could happen to them or someone they love, and applaud her courage in sharing her story to help others,” says Dr. Nandita Murukutla, Country Director, World Lung Foundation.
Dr. Pankaj Chaturvedi, a senior cancer surgeon from Tata Memorial Hospital, where Sunita was treated, added, “The patients we treat are a constant reminder that tobacco is deadly in both cigarette and smokeless forms. We need to do more to raise awareness of that fact. What is particularly distressing is that people have been misled by the tobacco industry to believe that smokeless tobacco can play a role in dental health. Sunita thought she was looking after her teeth, not harming her health, but there is no safe level of tobacco use. We are confident that powerful campaigns such as Sunita can have a huge impact on increasing awareness of the real harms of smokeless tobacco use and help to build support for a much-needed ban on smokeless tobacco products.”
Smokeless tobacco use in India and misperceptions about tobacco and dental health
According to The Tobacco Atlas, 33 percent of men and 18 percent of women use smokeless tobacco in India – one of the highest levels of prevalence in the word. The Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS-India) identifies that 27.5 crore people use any form of tobacco in India. A 2004 study found that many students in India use tobacco products as dentifrice, in spite of a 1992 law banning the use of tobacco in toothpaste or tooth powder. This reflects widespread misconception in India that tobacco is good for teeth and some manufacturers package and market their smokeless tobacco products as dental care products. Female tobacco users can be particularly susceptible to these messages; one study in an area of Kerala found that over 90 percent of female tobacco users started using tobacco because of tooth-related problems.
Research has shown that mass media campaigns are one of the most effective means to encourage people to stop using tobacco. Hard-hitting campaigns can compel tobacco users to quit, increase knowledge of the health risks of tobacco use, and promote behavior change in both smokers and non-smokers. It is one of the World Health Organization’s M-P-O-W-E-R (W=Warn) strategies to reduce tobacco consumption. MPOWER strategies are endorsed and promoted by the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use, of which World Lung Foundation is a principal partner.
About Voice of Tobacco Victims (VOTV)
Voice of Tobacco Victims is a victims' led initiative to sensitize law and policy makers about the dangers of extensive tobacco usage, tobacco industry activities, lack of stringent action against tobacco companies and growing plight of victims across the country. The campaign is being run by Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai and Sekhsaria Institute of Public Health, Navi Mumbai. For more information please visit votvindia.org.