Tobacco claims 2 lives every minute in India

Bhopal, May 30 (UNI) If you are a tobacco consumer then think twice before lighting up or chewing tobacco as you could end up being among two persons who die every minute in India due to tobacco-linked ailments, says an Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) report.

A million of this country's 250 million tobacco users die annually -- a challenge similar to that posed by AIDS though tobacco victims outnumber AIDS-affected people several times over.

''India, which is the third largest producer and consumer of tobacco after China and the US, has the dubious distinction of having the highest number of tobacco-linked oral cancer victims in the world,'' Indian Dental Association Vice-President and Dental Council of India Member G D Agarwal told UNI on the eve of World No Tobacco Day.

Tobacco causes several types of cancer but oral cancer accounts for 30 per cent of the tobacco toll -- three lakh deaths every year.

As per the ICMR report, among tobacco users, 16 per cent are cigarette smokers and 44 per cent are beedi smokers -- a total 60 per cent.

This implies that from among 150 million tobacco smokers, 90 per cent are at risk of lung cancer.

The other 40 per cent use it along with betel nut, leaf, in gutka etc and are at risk of Oral Sub Mucous Fibrosis (OSMF).

''OSMF, caused by excess chewing of tobacco and betel nut, is leading to oral cancer as it is irreversible and pre-cancerous in nature,'' claimes Dr Agarwal.

Symptoms include burning sensation in the mouth, inability to open one's mouth, loss of taste and diminished ability to tolerate spicy food.

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