Masters of Science in Public Health Research Paper, NUS, Singapore Globally, tobacco is widely recognized as one of the leading threats to population health, accounting for more than 6 million

Globally, tobacco is widely recognized as one of the leading threats to population health, accounting for more than 6 million deaths per year. Without urgent interventions, by 2030 the death toll from tobacco is projected to reach 8 million people per year.

As medical professionals can play a key role in the process of smoking cessation both as advisers and behavioral models for the citizens, it is necessary to have information on the habits and attitudes of healthcare professionals toward using tobacco, especially concerning their role to provide help to tobaccers, who wish to quit of using this addictive drug of tobacco.

Most African nations still remain in the early stages of the tobacco epidemic, with an overall lower smoking prevalence and lower smoking intensities than observed in other parts of the world [Lopez AD 2012]. However, it is important to note that smoking prevalence values vary significantly between individual countries.

By 2030 sub-Saharan Africa is projected to be the next epicenter of this epidemic. While most are in the early stages of a tobacco epidemic, evidence suggests that the epidemic may unfold differently across LMICs than has previously been observed in high-income settings.

Active tobacco smoking has been causally linked to an increased risk of acquiring and dying from numerous diseases, including many types of cancers, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and diabetes.

In Somalia, smoking harms the health, the treasury, and the spirit of Somalia. Every year more than 3200 of its people are killed by tobacco-caused disease, while more than 32000 children and more than 602000 adults continue to use tobacco each day.

Complacency in the face of the tobacco epidemic will ensure the tobacco industry continues to run roughshod over the lives of Somalia’s citizens and ensure that tobacco’s death toll will grow with each passing year. Tobacco control advocates must reach out to other communities to strengthen their efforts in this mortal fight.