Tobacco in the Western Pacific

Tobacco use is one of the world's leading preventable causes of death and is a major preventable risk factor of noncommunicable diseases like cancer, lung and heart diseases. The most common type of tobacco product used is manufactured cigarettes, but tobacco is also chewed, sucked or snuffed. Tobacco kills up to half of its users, and more than eight million people each year lose their lives as a result of direct tobacco use. Exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke is also harmful to health, causing an estimated 1.2 million deaths globally each year. The Western Pacific Region is home to 388 million smokers and almost half of adult men are current tobacco smokers.