Back in February in our Global Health blog, David Olsen discussed the shift in popularity of tobacco use from western cultures to developing countries with a dramatic 57% increase in Africa and the Middle East.

At the recent World Congress on Tobacco OR Health (WCTOH) in Abu Dhabi, WebsEdge_Health produced Tobacco OR Health TV to report on the current discussions on the effects of Tobacco particularly in UAE and Asia and global tobacco control efforts.

Tobacco OR Health TV covered many of the initiatives discussed in our Global Health blog as well as the increasing popularity of waterpipe and e-cigarettes, particularly within the youth demographic.

Watch what global representatives including the WCTOH President and The WHO had to say on the current situation:

A number of key announcements and discussions that came out of the 16^th World Congress on Tobacco OR Health and Tobacco OR Health TV was there to capture:

The WHO announced the new phase of The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC): the Sustainable development goals and the inclusion of Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) – an acknowledgement of the burden of NCDs on society and a contributor to premature deaths.

The American Cancer Society and the World Lung Foundation launched the 5^th Edition of the Atlas, advocating for tighter tobacco regulation and supporting Governments in implementing tobacco control policies. Framed by NCDs and the other risk factors, this edition further maps the influence of the tobacco companies.

Control measures to reduce the appeal of tobacco, such as plain packaging and pictorial warnings were discussed including the findings of the Australian plain packaging campaign; with the adoption of this method to follow in Ireland and the UK.

Hear Prof. Melanie Wakefield and Prof. Mike Daube AO discuss the implications of the Australian plain packaging campaign:

These key findings and initiatives support local organisations and governments in contesting the influence Big Tobacco has in their region. Tobacco OR Health TV visited The Tobacco Control Research Group at the American University of Beirut to get an in depth report on how their research is supporting tobacco control policies in Lebanon.

To watch all of our Global Health and Tobacco OR Health TV Coverage, please visit:www.globalhealthtv.com and www.websedge.com/tobacco_or_health_tv

Tobacco OR Health TV and Global Health TV are part of WebsEdge/Health – our group of products and services for Health related organizations, connecting issues and audiences through the power of television.

Follow us on Twitter at: @WebsEdge_Health and @GlobalHealth_TV

Special mention to our Global Health Blog Contributor: David J. Olson, Global Development Communicator & Advocate. Read David’s latest blog here and follow him on twitter: @davidjolson.Air Force 1