More Tobacco Products than Medication Help

It sometimes looks like almost every adult in Romania smokes. Unfortunately, some of those who do smoke have little consciousness of non-smokers' rights. According to official statistics, Romania has strong and constant tobacco sales because Romanians are heavy smokers.

Health awareness increased amongst Romanian consumers over the time. That’s why anti-tobacco researchers investigated the tobacco products use in Romania. At the end of the investigation they found that Romanians spend two billion Euros annually on cigarettes, more than the 1, 8 billion Euros they spend on over-the-counter medications.

These findings were released by Health Ministry Pneumonia Commission Chairman Miron Bogdan during a meeting on the results of smoking organized by the Romanian Society for Pneumonia and drug maker Pfizer. Over 600 million Euros is spent on medicines intended to cure cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, as well as cancer, Bogdan said.

StatiIn Romania, 33,000 people die annually because of smoking. The rate of mortality caused by lung cancer in young men is higher than the average in EU member states. Bogdan said the ministry had budget only one-fifth as much money as last year for treating people who wanted to give up smoking in 2009.

Statistics show that in Romania, there are 175 doctors who can offer special treatment to six million people who want to give up smoking. The Romanian Government recently approved legislation that bans smoking in every public place but as in many countries in Eastern Europe smokers have little respect for non-smokers and for smoking laws.

Currently smoking is not allowed on planes, on buses and on some trains. Luxury hotels have designated no-smoking floors but very few restaurants have no-smoking sections. Smoking is prohibited in all public places including hospitals, concert halls, and theatres. Worldwide, five million people die annually because of diseases caused by smoking.