Let me be clear about the new betel campaign. It is a good start.

Watch this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bT434U8PtIQ

Demand may decrease as a result of these testimonials.

But if this campaign is not followed by more measures to regulate sales and use, demand will simply increase again. Where is the plan?

Remorse avoidance is not enough.

Jamie

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Government launches anti-betel nut campaign
Pyae Thet Phyo
Myanmar Times
12 Sep 2017

Chewing betel nut and using tobacco has become a leading cause of death in the country, the government warned on Monday, as it launched nationwide campaign to stem the social menace.

Speaking on the occasion, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said that betel nut chewing and tobacco use claims the lives of over 60,000 Myanmar citizens every year, being a leading cause of oral cancer.

“Over 7 million Myanmar citizens use tobacco products, including kunyar, on a daily basis,” she said in a statement at the launch of the campaign to warn people against using smokeless tobacco in Nay Pyi Taw.

“The death toll in our country because of tobacco is over 60,000 yearly,” she said. “So we are facing a large health challenge. I would like to urge people to avoid betel chewing, to stay healthy.”

The Ministry of Health and Sports, in collaboration with the People’s Health Foundation, is spearheading the campaign which with dramatic testimonials of four men, who contracted oral cancer because of their betel quid chewing habit.

The campaign, which will run for six weeks in national television and radio, aims to reduce the death toll of betel chewing.

The number of people suffering and dying from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is growing at an alarming rate, said Minister of Health and Sports Dr Myint Htwe.

“NCDs account for more than 40 percent of all deaths in Myanmar,” Dr Myint Htwe said. “A large percentage of these deadly conditions is caused by tobacco use and chewing betel quid, in packages called kunyar.”

Dr Myint Htwe said the six-month national campaign will help to warn people about the real harms of chewing betel quid.

“In particular, we want to protect our youths from starting to chew. This is also a major focus of our National Health Plan 2017-2021,” he added.

Dr U Than Sein, president of the People’s Health Foundation, said the launch of the campaign would raise public awareness against the dangers from chewing betel nut.

“The death toll is higher in Myanmar than those dead in other low-income countries. About 30 percent of adults over 15 years use smokeless tobacco or chew betel quid in our country, which is a major cause of oral and laryngeal cancers.

This problem needs to be addressed urgently,”

At the heart of the campaign are two 30-second public messages for television, a radio message, and posters featuring real oral cancer patients.

These patients had chewed betel quid for many years, and now have seen their lives destroyed by tobacco-related cancer. All the patients consented to being part of the campaign.

This is the first national health campaign in Myanmar to clearly show real-world victims of oral cancer, following in the footsteps of similar successful campaigns in India, Thailand, and Taiwan.

The public service announcements (PSAs) end with a call to action “Avoid betel chewing, so you don’t regret your life choices.”

“This campaign and the outlawing of betel chewing in government offices, schools and hospitals in May 2016 are great first steps,” said Dr. U Than Sein. “But tobacco usage, and more specifically betel quid chewing, is a national health problem that merits a long-term approach, combining education, regulation and enforcement. Only then will we be able to structurally decrease the number of unnecessary deaths.”

Government, NGOs cough up K250 million for drive to stamp out habit

The government and non-government institutions spent a total of K250 million in its all-out campaign against betel nut chewing and tobacco use which started airing Monday on television and radio stations, said Dr Than Sein, chairperson of the People’s Health Foundation.

“The K250 million will cover the production and the presentation, and we will also be conducting a survey,” he said. “We will observe whether the awareness campaign is effective on the public or not, and analyse if the public was actually educated from this. This campaign will be for this year.”

The “public awareness campaign against consuming betel quid and use of tobacco products” was launched at the Ministry of Health and Sports in Nay Pyi Taw, according to Dr. than Sein.

He said the expenses for the campaign were shared by the government and some foreign institutions.

In the coming years there are plans to expand the awareness campaign through articles in newspapers and campaigns in schools , he said.

“We are not anticipating massive effectiveness from one project alone; however, we have estimated that there are about 5 million television viewers monthly, so we have picked the most-watched channels.” he continued.

The TV channels chosen for the campaign were: MRTV, MRTV-4, Myawaddy Documentary, and DVB TV.

The radio stations where the campaign would be aired are City FM and Mandalay FM radio, as well as in Mingalar Cinemas in Yangon and Mandalay will also be showing programmes that will educate the public about the effects of chewing betel quids.

The main objective of the campaign is to make the public aware that if they chew betel quids, they can be afflicted with diseases; the awareness programme will include a testimonial from a patient [about the ill effects of chewing betel quid] which is aimed to educate the citizens. The programme’s length is about 30 seconds,” Dr Than Sein said.

https://www.mmtimes.com/news/government-launches-anti-betel-nut-campaign.html

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State Counselor Calls Citizens to Curb Betel Chewing
Kyaw Kha
The Irrawaddy
13 September 2017

YANGON — State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has urged citizens to avoid chewing betel quid in order not to have “remorse.”

More than 7 million Myanmar citizens regularly chew betel quid and tobacco, which causes more than 60,000 deaths yearly, said Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in her message at the launch of a six-week media campaign to eradicate betel chewing on Monday.

“It is a huge health challenge,” she said, calling the fight against the unhealthy habit a “national cause.”

Since the state counselor assumed office, she has instructed for public campaigns on the issue in hopes of deterring betel chewing.

Just one month after she assumed office, she introduced a new anti-betel policy to reduce the habit.

The President’s Office opened an online poll in June to collect the public’s thoughts on reducing betel quid chewing and spitting in government offices and public places. No official ban has been put into effect to date.

In her message, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi called for public cooperation, especially to discourage schoolchildren under 13 years from starting.

Myanmar has the highest consumption of varieties of tobacco in betel quid among Asean countries, read Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s message.

The anti-betel campaign will be conducted in six cities in Yangon, Mandalay and Magwe regions, and aims to raise awareness about the adverse effects of betel chewing, according to the Ministry of Health and Sports.

Educational clips about the adverse effects of betel chewing will be screened at cinemas as well as on state broadcaster Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV) and Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB). The Public Health Foundation has provided 250 million kyats (US$185,000) for the campaign, according to the ministry.

https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/state-counselor-calls-citizens-curb-betel-chewing.html