CALGARY — A new series of warning graphics on cigarette packs will begin to be rolled out across Canada in the coming weeks.The new images showcase a variety of the potential health effects smoking can have, including increased risk of cancer, strokes, and heart disease, among others.The Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) has expressed its approval of these new images; it should help continue to decrease the prevalence of smoking in Canada.The CCS said, in a statement on Wednesday, that they commend "this new round of health warnings, calling them a proven measure to reduce the allure of smoking, increase awareness of the health effects, and reduce the smoking rates in Canada.".The 13 new graphics will be on the shelves by August 1 and will stay on packages of cigarettes, little cigars, and cigarette tobacco for two years as well as all other tobacco products for three years..In addition to the graphics on the outside packaging, the filter of each individual cigarette will also have an antismoking message written on it, another antismoking ploy that has been in place since 2023.These messages include statements like "Cigarettes damage your liver" and "Cigarettes harm children.""Graphic images cut through the noise. They show the devastating health effects of tobacco instantly, making the warnings far more impactful and more memorable. Rotating to a new set is important to keep warnings fresh and avoid them from becoming stale,” CCS Senior Policy Analyst Rob Cunningham is quoted as saying in a press release."Warnings work around the clock – on every package and cigarette, every day – making the product less appealing. And because the warnings are visible to family, friends and co-workers, their impact extends far beyond an individual who smokes.”Canada was the first country in the world to implement mandatory antismoking graphics to be printed on packs of cigarettes, having instituted the policy since 2001..Canada has seen a consistent decline in smoking, with the percentage of Canadians who said that they considered themselves smokers went down from 20% in 2000 to just 10% in 2020.
