All retail tobacco products must carry health warnings. These health warnings are placed on tobacco products to deter smokers from continuing tobacco consumption.
About tobacco health warnings
Health warning labels on tobacco products must:
- contain prescribed graphics
- include a warning statement, explanatory message and/or information messages
- be frequently rotated.
The health warning must cover 75 per cent of the front and 90 per cent of the back of a cigarette packet. Cigars and other tobacco products have their own specific requirements for health warnings.
Risks and injuries
Using tobacco products has been linked to a variety of illnesses, including:
- lung cancer
- throat cancer
- pancreatic cancer
- stomach cancer
- kidney and bladder cancers
- acute chest illnesses and diseases
- chronic chest illnesses and diseases
- lung illnesses and diseases
- stomach ulcers.
Women who use tobacco products during pregnancy expose their children to the risk of serious respiratory illnesses. Non-users, particularly children, can also suffer serious illness if they are exposed to second-hand smoke. Children exposed to second-hand smoke also have an increased risk of these illnesses, including:
- reduced lung function, especially for infants
- an increase in lower respiratory tract infections during infancy
- impaired lung growth
- the risk of developing more serious respiratory diseases in later life.
