Pfizer launches book titled: 'A world without smoking'

An anti-smoking coffee-table book 'A World Without Smoking: One Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words,' by Marjorie Husain was launched at the Indus Valley Art Gallery on Thursday. The book is supported by Pfizer Pakistan - a leading multinational pharmaceutical company in the country - to further its corporate commitments towards anti-smoking and tobacco control initiatives.
Pfizer globally supports tobacco and cancer control initiatives under the umbrella of Global Health Partnerships. The book is an amalgamation of anti-smoking posters that have been developed by school-going children, with an artistic description given by the author. "The book beautifully showcases the work students undertook to express their opinions with originality," stated Marjorie Husain, the author of the book.
"The anti-smoking concept was introduced to create awareness and to enlist the support of the students to inform their peers as well as adults," she said. A world without smoking' is an international campaign originating from The International Union against Cancer (UICC).
Pfizer Pakistan took the initiative in 2009 to spread awareness regarding the adverse effects of smoking by designing projects targeting tobacco control and anti-smoking. A part of this campaign was to raise awareness amongst school going students and teenagers and a poster competition was held among various school children in 2010. An exhibition followed this competition, "The idea focused on generating interest amongst school-going children, as most smokers take up smoking in their teens," stated Ahmer Ashraf, Head of Public Affairs, Pfizer Pakistan. "The competition culminated into an exhibition of these posters and the book is a documentation of the efforts of these children in conveying a strong, smoke-free message to all of us."
Also present at this occasion, Professor Javaid A Khan, chairperson of the National Alliance for Tobacco Control, stated, "Pakistan has one of the highest population of underage smokers and an estimated 100,000 people lose their lives each year due to smoking and tobacco related complications. We need to continue our drive against smoking to secure a healthy future for our children." Pfizer plans to spread the anti-smoking message amongst the public through this book, and aims to continue such initiatives to work for the general well-being and awareness of the society.-PR