'Poison in every puff': Canada to require warning labels on cigarette packs from August

In Canada, every cigarette pack will start carrying a health warning message from August 1 in the country’s bid to crack down on smoking.

The warnings will contain include messages like “Poison in every puff,” “Tobacco smoke harms children” and “Cigarettes cause cancer,” the country’s addiction minister said.

Addictions Minister Carolyn Bennett said tobacco use continues to kill 48,000 Canadians each year. The new labelling rule is a world first, she said, although Britain has flirted with a similar regulation.

“This bold step will make health warning messages virtually unavoidable and, together with updated graphic images displayed on the package, will provide a real and startling reminder of the health consequences of smoking,” Bennett said.

A study commissioned by the Canadian government showed that some young people particularly susceptible to tobacco addiction started smoking when a cigarette was offered to them but those given the pack with the warning repulsed.

Notably, Canada was the first country to implement graphic warnings like grisly pictorials of diseased hearts and lungs on cigarette packs in 2000.

Smoking has been trending down over the past two decades.

Ottawa aims to further reduce the number of smokers in the country to five percent of the population, or about 2 million people, by 2035 — from about 13 percent currently.

According to government data, almost half of the country’s healthcare costs are linked to substance use.

With inputs from agencies

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