Tobacco users in Bangladesh has dropped in the last eight years as the consumption rate of the population aged 15 and above was recorded 35.3 percent in 2017 from 43.3 percent in 2009, says a recent study.
On Tuesday, Health Minister Mohammad Nasim revealed findings of Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) 2017 conducted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics with support from the World Health Organisation.
Consumption among men dropped significantly to 46 percent from 58 percent while for women only 25.2 percent from 28.7 percent.
According to the survey, 39 percent of the population were exposed to secondhand smoke in their homes in 2017, down from 54.9 percent in 2009.
In case of workplaces, it dropped to 42.7 percent from 63 percent while on public transports 23.4 percent from 37.3 percent.
GATS uses global standardised methodology and includes information on respondents’ background, tobacco use, cessation, second-hand smoke, economics, media and knowledge, attitudes and perceptions towards tobacco use.
In Bangladesh, the BBS said they used a multi-stage, geographically clustered sample design to produce nationally representative data. For that, they reached 14,880 households.