| dc.description.abstract | There is abundant evidence documenting
the negative consequences of smoking. Over
the last decades, public smoking bans,
taxation, and public health tobacco control
campaigns induced a decline in smoking
prevalence in Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico,
three major economies in Latin America.
Argentina implemented effective policies to
reduce tobacco consumption, and smoking
prevalence has decreased over the past 15
years. In Brazil, there has been progress in
reducing smoking prevalence since 2006.
And in Mexico, as a result of tobacco
control efforts, smoking prevalence at the
national level has declined from 28 percent
in the 1990s to 17 percent in 2017.
Despite the development of tobacco control
policies over the years,1 overall prevalence
of smoking is still high in these three
countries. According to the World Bank’s
World Development Indicators, prevalence
decreased in the three countries during the
period from 2000 to 2018, but that
decrease appears to have ended according
to most 2020 data. In Brazil and Mexico,
prevalence decreased from nearly 24
percent to just above 13 percent in 2018,
and in Argentina it declined from 34
percent to below 25 percent. This means
that more can still be done to help people
turn away from smoking and avoid
negative health consequences. | |
