In the month of April, the British Parliament passed a bill that was intended to ban the purchase of cigarettes for the young British population, reenacting a relative approach once deployed by Switzerland in 2022. This move, tagged the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, though awaiting royal assent from King Charles III, appears significant, considering how smoking causes almost 100,000 deaths in the United Kingdom annually and tops the list of major factors responsible for disability, ill health and preventable causes of death.
But Britain is not alone when it comes to smoking addiction. More statistics could even be more disturbing if we move to America. For instance, an approximate of 2500 children are said to try their first cigarette on a daily basis and from this number, an estimate of 400 children become regular daily smokers; a total of $22 million is spent on a daily basis by tobacco companies to market tobacco products; and smoking kills about 500,000 Americans on an annual basis. Despite this worrisome data, no practical step has been taken towards reducing the damage.
While one may want to conclude this addictive reality was a result of untethered freedom that has always characterised the West, the case is just slightly different if we leave the European continent to Asia and the Middle East, regions with supposed superior moral philosophies. Yemen is a typical example where almost everyone is addicted to Khat, a locally grown stimulant. This addiction rate is so high that it is consumed by an average of 80% of adult males and 50% of adult females. Despite that the plant hijacks 40% of the country’s water supply and has eventuated serious environmental and economic concerns, it remains the dominant product in the agricultural economy of the country.
Notwithstanding the Yemeni situation, neither the country nor America topped the list of countries with the highest smoking rates according to World Population Review. North Macedonia sits atop with Timor-Leste and Lebanon making up the first three. And by the way, smoking is not the only addictive substance in the contemporary world. Others like alcohol, caffeine and other illicit drugs are just as deadly. As a matter of fact, while smoking and alcohol consumption are minimal in many Muslim regions compared to non-Muslim ones, probably due to clear Islamic prohibition on intoxicants, other addictions such as opioids, amphetamines (also Captagon), codeine and tramadol are very common addictions. What could then be the reason why many governments across the globe do not really care about this menace? Or isn’t it antithetical that a government like the US does not care about a leading cause of death which has been studied to kill more Americans each year way more than a combination of HIV/AIDS, drug abuse, alcohol, vehicle crashes and firearms?
Even though it was hitherto contested if smoking could indeed cause lung cancer, empirical studies as early as the 1950s scientifically established its certainty. Not only that, diseases and health complications that could arise out of smoking are multivariate. It is reported to account for 27% of all cancers. It is the primary cause of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). It also increases the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke, infertility in women, ectopic pregnancy, childbirth complications and erectile dysfunction. It can cause blindness, gum disease, tooth loss and lower bone density. Still, the world has not seen smoking as a big deal. It therefore appears unreasonable that the same world that aims at sustainability by safeguarding and promoting healthy living for every individual and community through the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3, remains uninterested in the perils of smoking. With this reality, one could be confident that the high aim of the European Union to achieve a tobacco-free generation by 2040 is a mere travesty.
Beyond the hypocritical approach of the modern world, Islam is very particular when it comes to preservation of life. One of the five ultimate objectives of the Sharīah, is ḥifẓ nafs (preservation of life). In other words, nothing whatsoever should compromise the sanctity of life of the living souls. Even when religious obligations can potentially put human life at risks, such obligations are rather revoked rather than implemented. A typical example is the case of sawm (fasting), which, despite being one of the five pillars of Islam, exempts different categories of people such as sick Muslims, nursing mothers, pregnant women and weak aged Muslims. As such, if theological fundamentals could be compromised to prove that life is sacred, it should not require any special plea to regulate stimulant hobbies that are as catastrophic and detrimental as smoking. This is clear-cut in Qur’an chapter 2, Suratul Baqarah, ayah 195, where Allah says “and cast not yourselves to perdition with your own hands”.
While the attempt of the British parliament in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill is a laudable approach, governments across the whole world need to deploy more practical measures that could indeed mitigate the casualties of smoking. Such could be the classification of tobacco and other nicotine products as contraband, an increase in their taxes, regulations of their availability and the introduction of fines and punishment for public smokers. This should be common sense for a generation that is so smart that it goes beyond natural to artificial intelligence. And if anywhere should quickly rethink and proact, it is the African and Muslim regions. The former for their poor health systems and the latter for the position of Islam, which frames human life with sacred boundaries.
*The views expressed in this content are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of İdrakpost.
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