烟草是最主要的可预防死因。每年有500多万人死于烟草的影响——超过艾滋病毒/艾滋病、疟疾和结核病死亡人数的总和。烟草是唯一在确切按照生产商意图使用的情况下可造成死亡的合法消费产品。所有吸烟者中有多达半数以上将死于一种与烟草相关的疾病。二手烟雾对每一个接触者造成伤害。
烟草公司每年花费数千万美元，使新吸烟者变成瘾君子并保持现有吸烟者不戒烟。通过广告和促销运动，包括使用精心制作的包装设计，烟草业继续转移人们的注意力，使他们无视烟草制品的致命作用。
在反击时，越来越多的国家按照世界卫生组织烟草控制框架公约的规定，要求烟草包装上以图象显示烟草的危害。它们使用世卫组织制定的MPOWER技术协助一揽子计划以便帮助实现它们在这一国际条约之下的承诺。
有效的健康警示，尤其是包括图片的警示，已被证实可推动吸烟者戒烟，并可减少烟草对尚未成瘾者的吸引力。尽管如此，每10个人中就有9生活在不要求烟草包装上有图片警示的国家中。
尼古丁是一种高度致瘾的物质。警告人们注意其真实危险性，对减少烟草成瘾可有很大作用。要求烟草包装上有警示是一种简便、廉价和有效的战略，可大规模地减少烟草使用和拯救生命。
现在是行动的时机。
英文版：
Tobacco is the leading preventable cause of death. More than five million people die from the effects of tobacco every year — more than from HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. It is the on
Tobacco companies spend tens of millions of dollars every year turning new users into addicts and keeping current users from quitting. Through advertising and promotional campaigns, including the use of carefully crafted package designs, the tobacco industry continues to divert attention from the deadly effects of its products.
More and more countries are fighting back by requiring that tobacco packages graphically show the dangers of tobacco, as called for in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. They use the MPOWER technical assistance package developed by WHO to help meet their commitments under this international treaty.
Effective health warnings, especially those that include pictures, have been proven to motivate users to quit and to reduce the appeal of tobacco for those who are not yet addicted. Despite this fact, 9 out of 10 people live in countries that do not require warnings with pictures on tobacco packages.
Nicotine is a highly addictive substance. Warning people about its true risks can go a long way towards reducing tobacco addiction. Requiring warnings on tobacco packages is a simple, cheap and effective strategy that can vastly reduce tobacco use and save lives.
Now is the time to act.
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