Two million people will die of smoking in China in 2030

A recent study concluded that one in three young Chinese smokers are likely going to die due to their habit of consuming tobacco in high amounts. They said the annual number of deaths in China that are caused by tobacco will rise from about 1 million in 2010 to 2 million in 2030 and 3 million in 2050, unless there is a widespread end to the habit.

The team of scientists, led by researchers from Oxford University in England, the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, and the Chinese Centre for Disease Control, conducted two national studies looking at representative populations across China.

Study coauthor Prof. Liming Li, from the Academy of Medical Sciences in Beijing, China, says: “Without rapid, committed, and widespread action to reduce smoking levels, China will face enormous numbers of premature deaths”.

“The first generation of men to experience the full hazards will probably be those born during the 1970s or 1980s”, according to the report. The figures didn’t take into account mortality rate among second hand smokers, which is a different story.

The death rate for men was not the same for women though, as there were fewer female smokers. Unless they quit for good, around half of those guys will eventually die from tobacco. In the United States, about 20 percent the adult men smoke and 15 percent of women do, and cigarette smoking causes about one of every five deaths, said the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

As more people in China start to smoke cigarettes at younger ages, researchers expect the proportion of male deaths attributed to smoking will increase.

However, researchers suggest that the number could be dramatically decline if smokers quit permanently.

Tobacco deaths in western countries have been dropping for 20 years, partly because of significant rises in cost, one of the co-authors, Oxford University’s Richard Peto, told AFP.

Income from tobacco sales and taxes are major sources of government revenue in China.

“This study is a sobering reminder that reducing tobacco use must remain a focus for public health globally as well as in the UK”. In China, where a popular pack sells for $1.50 cents, “a substantial increase in cigarette prices could save tens of millions of lives”, he says.

A new and alarming study shows that one in three people are killed each year because of smoking.