Smoking: The Cause of 100 Million Deaths in India

On the other hand, as per another study socio-economic background also has a bearing on the smoking habit as poor men in India smoke more than the rich. The World Health Survey (WHS) conducted by the WHO has found that 46.7 percent of the poor men smoke in India as against 21.8 percent of the rich men.

The study, released as part of the anti-tobacco campaign, found that 35.3 percent of men and 7.6 percent of women smoke in India, which finds classification as a low-income group in the study.

Confirming the finding, an expert from the Regional Cancer Centre said his experience has been that most of the patients coming to the hospital for tobacco- related problems hailed from poor family background.

Dr R Jayakrishnan, Assistant Professor, Community Oncology Division, RCC, said, "Majority of tobacco-induced cancer patients who visit RCC are from the lower income strata. The need of the hour is to develop prevention strategies specifically focusing on the more vulnerable sections," as reported by PTI.

(With PTI inputs)