Over 15,000 Cambodians die of tobacco-related illnesses annually: health expert

PHNOM PENH (Xinhua): More than 15,000 people died of smoking every year in Cambodia, Mom Kong, executive director of the local non-government organization, the Cambodia Movement for Health, said on Thursday (March 9).

According to a recent survey by the Ministry of Health, there are an estimated 1.6 million adult cigarette smokers, or 13 per cent of the kingdom's adults aged 15 years old and above, Kong said.

"The rate of adult cigarette smokers had dropped by 4 per cent between 2014 and 2022," he told Xinhua.

It is estimated that Cambodian smokers spent US$235 million a year on cigarettes and tobacco, Kong said, adding that tobacco users in rural areas were likely to spend more money buying tobacco products than those in urban areas.

Kong said if the government increases taxes on tobacco products, it is believed that the death toll from tobacco-related diseases will be further reduced.

He added that tobacco users are at risk of morbidity and early mortality from cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory illnesses, and many other tobacco-attributable diseases.

"According to a United Nations study, tobacco-related illnesses cost Cambodia's economy $657 million a year," Kong said.