Action needed to deter UAE smokers, says expert

SMOKING CALL: More research is needed into the ill-effects of shisha smoking, an oral medicine expert has said. (Getty Images)

The UAE needs to do more to deter people from smoking, a leading international expert on oral medicine has told delegates at a conference in Ras Al Khaimah.

Professor Saman Warnakulasuriya, head of the Department of Oral Medicine, King’s College, London, said it was unfortunate that the UAE was among the countries with highest prevalence of tobacco use in the world.

Prof. Saman also called upon the health authorities to conduct research on the ill-effects of Shisha or water-pipe smoking.

He said steps taken so far including banning smoking in public places, were welcome, UAE daily Khaleej Times reported on Monday.

"But the country needs to have a comprehensive anti-tobacco strategy which should include provision to ban advertisements of tobacco products and increase taxation on tobacco products,” he said at the one-day International Medical Sciences Academy Conference organised by the RAK College of Dental Sciences on Sunday.

He added that laws restricting sale of cigarettes to minors should also be strictly implemented while the issue of how prominently cigarette packets can be displayed in stores also needed to be addressed.

As many as 12 international and local speakers from the UK, India, Pakistan and the UAE presented papers at the conference.

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