WHO: Quitting Smoking Has Immediate Health Effects
2020-09-30
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1The World Health Organization has released a new report this week linking the yearly deaths of 1.9 million people to tobacco use.
2The report was released for World Heart Day by the World Heart Federation and the University of Newcastle in Australia.
3It is a warning of the dangers of tobacco which can lead to heart disease.
4Cardiovascular disease is the top cause of death on Earth, killing an estimated 17.9 million people every year.
5The World Health Organization, or WHO, reports smoking and second-hand smoke are responsible for nearly two million of these deaths.
6Reudigar Krech is Director for Health Promotion at the WHO.
7He told VOA that even life-long smokers who quit their deadly habit can prevent dying too soon from heart attack or stroke.
8"That's the good news. If tobacco users take immediate action now and quit, then their risk of heart disease will decrease by 50 percent after one year of not smoking," he said.
9Krech added that the health effects of quitting smoking are immediate.
10Tobacco use presents the biggest threat.
11But other major risks for heart disease include lack of exercise, unhealthy diet, high blood pressure and cholesterol and being overweight.
12In addition, the WHO warns that high blood pressure and heart disease increase the risk of severe COVID-19.
13Krech said people are beginning to understand that smoking during a health crisis is not a good idea.
14"There are about 400 million people who want to quit smoking because of COVID-19," Krech said.
15He also said people know that they could develop more severe symptoms if they smoke.
16While it is not easy to quit smoking, tools such as nicotine patches are available to help.
17However, the WHO warns against using smokeless tobacco, which every year it says, is linked to about 200,000 deaths from heart disease.
18The United Nations health agency adds that e-cigarettes also raise blood pressure.
19High blood pressure increases the risk of heart disease as well as COVID-19.
20Krech said governments can help people to quit by supporting some simple measures.
21They can create smoke-free areas, ban tobacco advertising and raise taxes on tobacco products.
22I'm Mario Ritter Jr.
1The World Health Organization has released a new report this week linking the yearly deaths of 1.9 million people to tobacco use. 2The report was released for World Heart Day by the World Heart Federation and the University of Newcastle in Australia. It is a warning of the dangers of tobacco which can lead to heart disease. 3Cardiovascular disease is the top cause of death on Earth, killing an estimated 17.9 million people every year. The World Health Organization, or WHO, reports smoking and second-hand smoke are responsible for nearly two million of these deaths. 4Reudigar Krech is Director for Health Promotion at the WHO. He told VOA that even life-long smokers who quit their deadly habit can prevent dying too soon from heart attack or stroke. 5"That's the good news. If tobacco users take immediate action now and quit, then their risk of heart disease will decrease by 50 percent after one year of not smoking," he said. Krech added that the health effects of quitting smoking are immediate. 6Tobacco use presents the biggest threat. But other major risks for heart disease include lack of exercise, unhealthy diet, high blood pressure and cholesterol and being overweight. 7In addition, the WHO warns that high blood pressure and heart disease increase the risk of severe COVID-19. Krech said people are beginning to understand that smoking during a health crisis is not a good idea. 8"There are about 400 million people who want to quit smoking because of COVID-19," Krech said. He also said people know that they could develop more severe symptoms if they smoke. While it is not easy to quit smoking, tools such as nicotine patches are available to help. 9However, the WHO warns against using smokeless tobacco, which every year it says, is linked to about 200,000 deaths from heart disease. The United Nations health agency adds that e-cigarettes also raise blood pressure. High blood pressure increases the risk of heart disease as well as COVID-19. 10Krech said governments can help people to quit by supporting some simple measures. They can create smoke-free areas, ban tobacco advertising and raise taxes on tobacco products. 11I'm Mario Ritter Jr. 12Lisa Schlein reported this story for VOANEWS. Mario Ritter Jr. adapted it for VOA Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 13______________________________________________ 14Words in This Story 15habit -n. a something that a person does in a repeated or regular way 16stroke -n. a serious medical condition when a blood vessel in the brain breaks or is blocked 17symptom -n. a change in the body or mind that signals a disease is present 18patch -n. a piece of material that is stuck to the body which holds and spreads medicine 19We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.