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to be to partake of rich meals high in saturated fat content, followed by
the relaxing cigarette or cigarettes and taking the car to post a letter,
prevention appears to be fighting a losing battle ! Surely it must be more
worthwhile to make a bit of an effort and be more abstemious in one's
diet, foregoing the after-meal cigarettes and posting a letter while taking
the dog for a walk.
The great problem with this disease complex is that everybody seems
to think that it cannot or will not happen to them, but it does, as the
mortality figures show year by year.
An added feature worthy of note is the increased tendency for this
disease to affect people in the younger age groups. Could the reason for
this be due to the faster pace of business life nowadays with the associated
stepping up of nervous strain and tension—everything requiring to be
done the day before it is even thought of ! This tension has to be relieved
by some means and solace is often sought in the smoking of cigarettes
and so a vicious circle is set up leading to increased smoking, overfeeding,
and lack of exercise.
Preventive measures as is so often the case lie within the individual's
jurisdiction. The great problem is to drive this point home in order that
people do take some positive action to safeguard their health.
Deaths from Cancer
In 1971, the number of deaths from cancer was 281 male and 213
female. Deaths from lung cancer decreased by 27 to a total of 132 for the
year or a rate per 100,000 of 64.4. Any reduction in mortality is to be
welcomed but yearly fluctuations in numbers must not be confused with
trends and unfortunately the downward trend in the mortality by this
disease is taking a long time to materialise to any significant degree.
The Royal College of Physicians' report "Smoking and Health Now"
published in 1971 drew attention to the urgency of the task confronting
preventive medicine as a result of the damage to health caused by cigarette
smoking. The report brings together and assesses the most recent evidence
linking cigarette smoking with lung cancer, heart disease and bronchitis.
It shows that the heavy smoker aged 35 has a 2 in 5 chance of dying
before the age of 65 while for a non-smoker of that age the risk is only
1 in 5, and that an average smoker of 15 cigarettes a day aged 30 can
expect to lose about 5½ years of life. The report shows that the only
certain protection from smoking-induced disease is not to smoke at all
and that those who cannot completely give up the habit will be well
advised to transfer from cigarettes to a pipe or cigars.
During the year, several steps were taken to tackle the problem of
smoking and health. The Government concluded an agreement with
tobacco manufacturers to place warning notices on cigarette packets and
advertisements and provided extra funds for the Health Education