The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Coimbatore News : Eschew use of tobacco, people told

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore

Eschew use of tobacco, people told

Staff Reporter

Students observe the day with fervour, pamphlets distributed

STOP SMOKING: An NSS volunteer tries to sensitise a person on the ill-effects of smoking at the Gandhipuram Town Bus Stand in the city during a drive organised as part of Anti-tobacco Day observance on Tuesday. - Photo: S. Siva Saravanan

COIMBATORE: More than 100 volunteers of the National Service Scheme from colleges in Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode and Perundurai made a fervent appeal against use of tobacco in the city on Monday. The students fanned out to different parts of the city to discourage smoking and tobacco chewing as part of the Anti-tobacco Day observance organised by Sri Ramakrishna Institute of Oncology and Research. Wearing T-shirts that had the slogan "Say no to tobacco" printed across, the students distributed pamphlets at bus stands, railway junction, airport and other places where public converged.

Students and staff of the Ashwin PPG Cancer Hospital also distributed pamphlets at these places and Town Hall to warn people of the risks from use of tobacco. When smokers were about to strike a matchstick to light a cigarette, a pamphlet with anti-tobacco message was thrust into their hands. "Let us hope that the message is received well," said P. Guhan, Director of the institute. "As many as 125 students persevered the whole day to discourage these habits," he said. Those who smoked brought health hazards to the passive smokers around them. Dr. Guhan said the Tobacco Cessation Clinic in the institute had so far treated 57 persons.

Along with counselling, methods such as nicotine replacement therapy were also provided by giving nicotine laced chewing gums to compulsive smokers or those who chewed tobacco in various forms. Out of the 57 treated the current status of 23 was not known. Addiction to this `silent killer' was high because the nicotine in tobacco shoots 150 neurotransmittors into the central nervous system, giving some pleasure to the user. At a function in the evening, the Inspector-General of Police (West Zone), A. Subramanian, gave away certificates to the NSS volunteers. At a seminar organised by Ashwin Hospital, the Project Officer of the District Rural Development Agency, P. Jeyabalakrishnan, and the hospital's Managing Trustee, L.P. Thangavelu, spoke.

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