An estimated 1.3 million people lose their lives annually due to exposure to second-hand smoke, according to the World Health Organization’s Global Tobacco Epidemic 2025 report. The figure underscores the severe and often overlooked health risks posed not only to smokers but also to those involuntarily exposed to tobacco smoke in their environments.
A new report unveiled at the World Conference on Tobacco Control in Dublin has issued a stark warning, urging renewed global efforts to safeguard and advance progress in curbing tobacco use. The report highlights growing interference by the tobacco industry as a major threat to existing policies and public health gains.
Centered around the WHO’s six evidence-based MPOWER strategies—designed to monitor tobacco use, protect people from exposure, offer help to quit, warn about dangers, enforce advertising bans, and raise taxes—the report emphasizes that tobacco continues to claim more than seven million lives each year. It calls for stronger political will and vigilance to counter industry pushback and reinforce global tobacco control.
The WHO MPOWER encompasses, “Monitoring tobacco use and prevention policies; protecting people from tobacco smoke with smoke-free air legislation and offering help to quit tobacco use.”
It also ensures “Warning about the dangers of tobacco with pack labels and mass media, enforcing bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship; and raising taxes on tobacco.”
The report read, “Around 1.3 million people die from second-hand smoke every year. Today, 79 countries have implemented comprehensive smoke-free environments, covering one-third of the world’s population.
“Since 2022, six additional countries (Cook Islands, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sierra Leone, Slovenia and Uzbekistan) have adopted strong smoke-free laws, despite industry resistance, particularly in hospitality venues.”
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It said since 2007, 155 countries have implemented at least one of the WHO MPOWER tobacco control measures to reduce tobacco use at the best-practice level.
“Today, over 6.1 billion people, three-quarters of the world’s population, are protected by at least one such policy, compared to just one billion in 2007.
“Four countries have implemented the full MPOWER package: Brazil, Mauritius, the Netherlands (Kingdom of the), and Türkiye.
“Seven countries are just one measure away from achieving the full implementation of the MPOWER package, signifying the highest level of tobacco control, including Ethiopia, Ireland, Jordan, Mexico, New Zealand, Slovenia and Spain,” it noted.
However, there are major gaps as 40 countries still have no MPOWER measure at the best-practice level and more than 30 countries allow cigarette sales without mandatory health warnings.
“Twenty years since the adoption of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, we have many successes to celebrate, but the tobacco industry continues to evolve and so must we,” the WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, said.
“By uniting science, policy and political will, we can create a world where tobacco no longer claims lives, damages economies or steals futures. Together, we can end the tobacco epidemic,” he added.
The WHO Global Tobacco Epidemic 2025 report, produced with the backing of Bloomberg Philanthropies, was officially launched during the 2025 Bloomberg Philanthropies Awards for Global Tobacco Control.
The report’s release marked a significant moment in the global push for stronger tobacco regulation, reinforcing the urgency of sustained international cooperation to combat the rising health and economic toll of tobacco use. It also underscored the critical role of philanthropic and public health partnerships in advancing evidence-based policies and defending progress against mounting industry resistance.