Turkey faces high tobacco mortality with 125,000 annual deaths

Tobacco use causes significant mortality in Turkey, with approximately 125,000 deaths recorded annually according to data from the Ministry of Health. This equates to one death every four minutes. Of these fatalities, roughly 25,000 are attributed to passive smoking.

Globally, tobacco products contribute to over 7 million deaths per year, including 1.6 million from secondhand smoke exposure. The World Health Organization notes that tobacco use damages nearly every organ in the body, leading to cancer, heart disease, stroke, and respiratory illnesses. Turkey specifically ranks first globally in the frequency of lung cancer and related deaths among men.

Tobacco smoke contains approximately 4,000 chemical substances and toxins. Exposure to these particles and carbon monoxide can reduce the blood's oxygen-carrying capacity and increase the risk of coronary heart disease and lung cancer, even for non-smokers.