An anti-smoking campaign is focusing on female smokers.
According to the Ministry of Health’s statistics, 11.9 per cent of women in the age group 15-18 and 7.1 per cent of adult women smoke cigarette or shisha.
Officials say the incidence of smoking is on the rise among the female population. Around 43 per cent of the population smoke.
Launched recently by the Bahrain Anti-Smoking Society, the ‘Women say No to Smoking’ campaign has many partners and is financed by the NGOs’ Fund at the Ministry of Social Development. It aims to combat smoking among females by increasing awareness of its affects and assisting women to quit the dangerous habit.
The drive targets females above 15 and would reach them at health and social centres, places of worship, education institutions, NGOs offices and the media sector. The campaign activities will include mobile messages, awareness through media, workshops and lectures. “We are glad to launch the campaign to help women lead a healthy lifestyle,” campaign coordinator Dr Mariam Al Jalahma said.
Though the number of female smokers is much lower than male smokers thanks to social barriers, shisha smoking is very common among women because of the notion that shisha isn’t against traditions and poses less health hazards.
However, Dr Al Jalahma said the number of female smokers was on the rise because of the modern lifestyle and the influence of the Western civilisation. Cigarettes companies worldwide are targeting women to increase sales by portraying the image of smoking women as successful and independent.
Last update on: 5-7-2008