Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit最新文献

{"title":"High-level meeting of ministers of health and ministers of finance from the Eastern Mediterranean Region on taxation of tobacco and nicotine products.","authors":"","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.803","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26719/2024.30.11.803","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"803-804"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901370","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Situation analysis of sugar‑sweetened beverages taxation in Eastern Mediterranean Region.","authors":"Marwa Ms Abbass, Anne-Marie Perucic, Eman T Ibrahim, Ayoub Al-Jawaldeh","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.720","DOIUrl":"10.26719/2024.30.11.720","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Significant attention is being given to the role of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) in the increasing rates of obesity and diet-related noncommunicable diseases in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR).</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>To document the different approaches being used by EMR countries in implementing the sugar-sweetened beverages taxation.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This study used data on indirect taxes levied on SSBs by the 22 EMR countries and territories collected by WHO between July 2022 and June 2023. For comparison between countries, all applicable taxes were converted to a percentage of the tax-inclusive retail prices and standardized.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Eleven EMR countries imposed the national excise tax on carbonated SSBs and 10 imposed excise tax on at least one type of beverage other than carbonated SSBs. Ad valorem excise taxes were the most-used type for carbonated SSBs, with 10 of the 11 countries applying them. Morocco applied volume-based specific excise taxes with different rates depending on the sugar content. Excise tax represented the highest tax proportion (31.7%) in Oman and United Arab Emirates, while total tax represented the highest proportion (42.0%) of the retail price in Saudi Arabia and 36.5% in Oman and United Arab Emirates.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Only half of the EMR countries are currently implementing SSBs taxation, and the imposed tax is less than 20% in half of these countries. All EMR countries should start implementing SSBs taxation as part of their national disease control policy frameworks to help reverse the increasing trend of obesity and other diet-related noncommunicable diseases in the region.</p>","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"720-729"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901382","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Taxing tobacco as a strategy to reduce consumption and increase public health benefits in Pakistan.","authors":"Namra Aziz, Aysha Almas, Tariq Mahmood, Gerald S Bloomfield, Zainab Samad","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.772","DOIUrl":"10.26719/2024.30.11.772","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Tobacco consumption poses a significant challenge to global health and contributes to the increase in noncommunicable diseases and premature deaths.</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>To investigate the potential impact of a 70% tobacco tax on consumption and government revenue in Pakistan.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We analysed secondary data from 2011 to 2022 (after imposition of a 70% excise tax) from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, Pakistan Social and Living Standard Survey, financial yearbooks and Federal Board of Revenue reports for tobacco consumption and government revenue. Variables included tobacco price inflation, per capita income, cigarette price, federal excise duty, and government revenue.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The higher taxes reduced tobacco production by PKR 3.72 billion (≈US$ 13.4 million). Price elasticity analysis indicated an inelastic demand for cigarettes, mostly among the rural populations. Imposition of excise duty of 70% of the retail price caused a decrease in government revenue by PKR 390 million (≈US$ 1.4 million).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Implementing 70% taxation on tobacco products is beneficial, however, to fully realize its benefit, there is a need for strict regulation on brand shifting and illegal trade.</p>","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"772-778"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12128199/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901402","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact of taxation on tobacco products prices in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates.","authors":"Sophia Delipalla, Fatimah El-Awa, Asmus Hammerich, Anne-Marie Perucic, Sophia El-Gohary","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.738","DOIUrl":"10.26719/2024.30.11.738","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>In 2016, the 6 Gulf Cooperation Council countries agreed to implement a harmonized excise tax on tobacco products, at a rate of 100% of the pre-tax price.</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>To assess the implementation of tobacco taxation in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates and its impact on consumer prices, affordability and substitution possibilities.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This study conducted simple descriptive analysis of open-source secondary data reported to WHO by Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates on cigarette excise taxes, price levels, price dispersion, and affordability.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The 3 countries imposed more than 70% excise tax on tobacco products. Saudi Arabia, in addition, imposed the value added tax. This led to sharp price increases and less affordability in all the countries. In 2020, the affordability index in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries ranged from 1.3% in Kuwait to 3.8% in Saudi Arabia. However, affordability was still higher in these countries than in the rest of the world.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Despite the progress made on tobacco tax reform in the 3 countries, affordability was higher than in other countries, indicating the need for improvements. The tobacco tax system has some weaknesses that need to be addressed in future reforms, for example, the lack of systematic data collection and management systems and the disconnect between the health, tax economics, research, and policy experts.</p>","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"738-745"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901374","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The impact of health taxes on consumption of tobacco and sugar-sweetened beverages in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.","authors":"Hanan Balkhy","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.711","DOIUrl":"10.26719/2024.30.11.711","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Consumption of tobacco, nicotine and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) poses a significant risk to public health, contributing to increases in noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and obesity. Globally, regular consumption of SSBs increases the risk of type 2 diabetes by 26%, and deaths related to tobacco and nicotine consumption exceed 8 million annually, including 1.3 million due to exposure to second-hand smoke. This loss of lives and the negative impact on health underscore the urgent need for effective public health interventions to curb the consumption of these harmful products.</p>","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"711-713"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901354","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Banning tobacco products sales to adolescents in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.","authors":"Sarah S Monshi, Turky J Arbaein, Abdullah M Alanazi","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.730","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26719/2024.30.11.730","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Tobacco use poses a challenge to public health in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. Although restricting access to tobacco can reduce consumption among adolescents, there is limited knowledge of how to implement the tobacco sales ban policy in the sub-region.</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>To assess implementation of the ban on tobacco products sales to adolescents in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries as recommended in the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We used the school-based, self-reported, cross-sectional survey data collected by the Global Youth Tobacco Survey 2013-2018 among 13-15-year-old students from 5 of the 6 Gulf Cooperation Council countries. We analysed the pattern of implementation of the 4 provisions of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control that address the banning of tobacco products sales to adolescents.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Implementation of key provisions related to the banning of tobacco products sales to adolescents varied among the countries. Bahrain, Qatar and United Arab Emirates implemented the 4 provisions, while Kuwait and Oman implemented only one. More than 50% of the adolescents who tried to purchase cigarettes were not refused.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The GCC countries should consistently implement and enforce the policy on banning tobacco products sales to adolescents as part of their tobacco control programmes. Programmes should seek to engage and educate merchants and adolescents on the health implications of tobacco use and the need to enforce compliance.</p>","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"730-737"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901311","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The impact of tobacco consumption on household catastrophic health expenditure in Türkiye.","authors":"Sıtkıcan Saraçoğlu, Dilek Başar, Selcen Öztürk","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.757","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26719/2024.30.11.757","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Understanding the financial burden of smoking on households is crucial for developing effective strategies and policies to reduce smoking and mitigate its impact on household health.</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>To investigate the relationship between smoking and catastrophic health expenditure in Türkiye.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This cross-sectional study used microdata from household budget surveys conducted by the Turkish Statistical Institute in 2015 and 2019. The data included the socioeconomic characteristics, income levels and consumption patterns of various goods and services by individuals and households. We used the pooled logit model to analyse the factors influencing household catastrophic health expenditure, focusing on the smoking status of households.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The presence of a smoker in a household, an uninsured person, a disabled or ill member, and members with higher education were significant positive predictors of catastrophic health expenditure, while being poor, working and having school-aged children were significant negative predictors. Smokers within the household were the foremost contributors to the probability of catastrophic health expenditure, with a coefficient of 0.4101 and marginal effect of 7.94%.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study highlights the need for comprehensive tobacco control measures that analyse and use critical information from the interactions between public health and economic stability to reduce tobacco consumption and the associated financial burdens on households.</p>","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"757-763"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901358","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Cross-sectional analysis of soft drinks consumption patterns post-taxation in Saudi Arabia.","authors":"Abeer S Alzaben, Shahd Alabdulkader, Nahla Bawazeer, Basil H Aboul-Enein, Elizabeth Dodge, Joshua Bernstein, Nada Benajiba, Fatmah Almoayad","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.764","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26719/2024.30.11.764","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Sweetened soft drinks consumption contributes to the increasing prevalence of obesity in Saudi Arabia. In 2017, Saudi Arabia began imposing tax on sugar-sweetened drinks to combat obesity.</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>To investigate the determinants of soft drinks consumption patterns among adults in Saudi Arabia 5 years after consumer tax implementation.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This cross-sectional study was conducted among 1935 adults in Saudi Arabia, aged 20-60 years, predominantly female (80.4%). Data were collected using an online questionnaire that focused on the sociodemographic and anthropometric characteristics and consumption patterns of participants, as well as their attitudes towards soft drink consumption. Spearman's correlation and principal component analysis were used to evaluate the factors influencing soft drink consumption. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A significant majority of the participants (82.9%, n = 1605) reported consuming sweetened soft drinks 1-3 times per month. Habitual consumption was the most cited reason (27.1%), followed by consumption at social gatherings (12.9%) and while eating at restaurants (12.4%). Advertising was the least (7.1%) consumption influencing factor. Correlation analysis revealed that availability (0.358, P < 0.05), social gatherings (0.357, P < 0.05) and affordability (0.336, P < 0.05) were significantly associated with consumption frequency.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Despite increased taxes on soft drinks in Saudi Arabia, consumption remains largely habitual among adults. The minimal impact of advertising and normalized price perceptions suggest that alternative strategies are required to effectively reduce soft drink consumption among this population.</p>","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"764-771"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901343","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development of a policy brief to reform waterpipe tobacco taxation in Egypt.","authors":"Aya Mostafa","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.779","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26719/2024.30.11.779","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Waterpipe tobacco smoking is increasing in Egypt, although there are several interventions to reduce its use.</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>To describe the development of a policy brief to reform waterpipe tobacco taxation in Egypt.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>During 2019-2022, we synthesized available literature evidence on waterpipe tobacco taxation in Egypt and other countries. We then held a policy dialogue to engage various stakeholders to discuss and finalize a draft policy brief for Egypt.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The policy brief proposes 3 elements for improving waterpipe tobacco taxation in Egypt: establishing a public platform for national data on waterpipe tobacco economics; modelling the economic and public health benefits of an improved waterpipe tobacco taxation system; and raising waterpipe tobacco tax level and reforming the taxation structure.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Application of the knowledge-to-policy translation framework was instrumental in bridging the gap between evidence synthesis and political framing for the policy brief. More effort should be made to strengthen evidence-informed policymaking, particularly in settings where tobacco control governance is fragmented and tax policies are applied inconsistently.</p>","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"779-787"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901362","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A review of sugar-sweetened beverages taxation in Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates.","authors":"Ayoub Al-Jawaldeh, Anne-Marie Perucic, Asmus Hammerich, Adham Rashad Ismail Abdel Moneim, Eman T Ibrahim, Fatma Essa ALMatrooshi, Majid Mqbel Alkhalaf, Mondher Letaief, Nouf Khamis Alali, Taghreed Mohammed Alghaith, Marwa Ms Abbass","doi":"10.26719/2024.30.11.746","DOIUrl":"10.26719/2024.30.11.746","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The World Health Organization recommends taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) as part of cost-effective interventions to prevent diet-related noncommunicable diseases.</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>To analyse the adoption and implementation of SSBs taxation in Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates and its impact on obesity rates.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Using a semi-structured questionnaire, we collected information on progress with implementation of SSBs taxes in Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates between January 2015 and December 2023. We searched literature published in Arabic and English on the subject and used the WHO acceleration scenario modelling tool to forecast the potential impact of SSBs on overweight and obesity in the 2 countries over the same period.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Both countries implemented SSBs taxation consistently between 2015 and 2023, generating additional revenue and reducing obesity rates. The acceleration scenario estimates showed that SBB taxation could reduce overweight prevalence among children and adolescents (aged 5-19 years) from 38.2% in 2020 to 34.4% in 2030 in Saudi Arabia and from 37.0% to 34.6% in United Arab Emirates, and could reduce obesity rate by approximately 12.7% in Saudi Arabia and 9.5% in United Arab Emirates in the same period.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This review provides further evidence that SSBs taxes can be effective in reducing sugar consumption, thereby reducing overweight and obesity rates. However, to effectively combat obesity and overweight among children and adolescents, taxation policies must be implemented alongside other strategies, including public health campaigns to increase awareness about the health risks associated with excessive sugar consumption.</p>","PeriodicalId":93985,"journal":{"name":"Eastern Mediterranean health journal = La revue de sante de la Mediterranee orientale = al-Majallah al-sihhiyah li-sharq al-mutawassit","volume":"30 11","pages":"746-756"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901132","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}