Issues: ‘Indonesia, President Obama and tobacco’

March 19, p. 7

The controversy over smoking in Indonesia is heating up coincidentally with the visit of US President Barack Obama. He couldn’t possibly have learnt that in school in Jakarta! According to his recent medical checkup both his doctor and wife are concerned about his smoking. A Singapore paper has criticized him, while two articles in The Jakarta Post took opposing views on a ban on smoking. Perhaps Indonesia has something to offer the US President and the wider world in resolving these issues.  
There is currently important work going on in Indonesia, which indicates a difference between good and bad smoking. A history of tobacco also points to this distinction and it’s important to know and quickly clarify in Indonesia just what this is and then point it out to the rest of the world. The anti-smoking lobby all around the world is quite right, smoking the normal commercial cigarettes available in the market today is playing havoc with health, medical and government expenses. Something has to be done about it, just ask President Obama while he’s in Indonesia. (By Murray Clapham, Singapore)

Your comments:
It is an interesting piece that leaves out the most important details: Who are the “remarkable Indonesian scientists and doctors have discovered ‘good’ cigarettes”?
For a start, the health risks of cigarette smoking are clear. The data from Persahabatan Hospital Jakarta showed that the majority of
lung-related illnesses are strongly associated with smoking history. Having perceived this risk, one easily realizes that the harm caused by smoking outweighs the alleged benefit (if any).  
Ahmad Rusdan H. Utomo
Jakarta

This is the most outrageous piece of misinformation I have read in years. No evidence is provided to substantiate these unscientific claims about so-called “healthy smoking”. Am I missing something or have I just read tobacco company propaganda from the 1960s?
There is unequivocal evidence from more than 50 years of high quality medical research from all corners of the planet that tobacco smoking is harmful, regardless of the amount smoked or the additives or type of filters used in cigarettes.
In particular tobacco smoking, whether using factory-made cigarettes or roll-your-own, is a leading cause of cardiovascular disease, including acute heart events, stroke, aortic aneurysm and peripheral vascular disease. In concert with sustained elevated blood pressure and cholesterol, tobacco smoking increases the risks of these diseases substantially, in people living in Indonesia, Australia, as elsewhere.
The causal role of smoking in chronic lung disease and cancers of many types is also so well-established as to not need mentioning in more detail. I am incredulous that the director of an organization dedicated to improving heart health can assert that cigarette smoking may be potentially beneficial for health, or that there are “good” cigarettes. I call on the Victor Chang Foundation to issue a statement dissociating the organization from its director’s irresponsible comments.
Chris Bullen
Auckland, New Zealand