1.3 million people die annually from second-hand smoke – WHO

Tuesday, June 24, 2025 - The World Health Organisation (WHO) has revealed that approximately 1.3 million people die annually from exposure to secondhand smoke, highlighting the urgent need for stronger global tobacco control efforts.

This statistic was part of the newly released WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic 2025, launched at the World Conference on Tobacco Control in Dublin. The report warns that while progress has been made, rising interference from the tobacco industry continues to threaten public health policies and enforcement.

Currently, 79 countries have implemented comprehensive smoke-free laws. The report focuses on the six key MPOWER strategies developed by WHO in 2007 to help countries reduce tobacco use, which still claims over seven million lives each year.

The MPOWER measures include:

Monitoring tobacco use and prevention policies

Protecting people from tobacco smoke through legislation

Offering help to quit tobacco use

Warning about the dangers through packaging and mass media

Enforcing bans on advertising and promotion

Raising taxes on tobacco products

Since MPOWER's launch, 155 countries have implemented at least one of these measures at the highest recommended level. In 2007, only 1 billion people were covered by any of the policies. Today, over 6.1 billion people—around 75% of the global population—are protected by at least one.

Four countries namely Brazil, Mauritius, the Netherlands, and Türkiye—have fully implemented all six MPOWER components. Seven others, including Ethiopia, Ireland, Jordan, Mexico, New Zealand, Slovenia, and Spain, are just one step away from achieving full implementation.

WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized the need for governments to remain vigilant:

“Twenty years since the adoption of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, we have many successes to celebrate. But the tobacco industry continues to evolve—and so must we. Together, we can create a world where tobacco no longer steals lives, damages economies, or threatens future generations.”

The report, developed with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies, was launched during the 2025 Bloomberg Awards for Global Tobacco Control, recognising government and non-government efforts worldwide.

Michael Bloomberg, WHO Global Ambassador for Non-communicable Diseases, reiterated his support:

“Since we began supporting global tobacco control in 2007, countries have made significant progress—but the work is far from done. Bloomberg Philanthropies is committed to saving millions more lives alongside WHO.”