Global Tobacco Control

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Tobacco use is a major preventable cause of premature death and disease worldwide. Currently, it is estimated that nearly 8 million people die each year due to tobacco-related illnesses, which costs the global economy US $1.4 trillion annually.1 An efficient and systematic surveillance mechanism to monitor the epidemic is one of the essential components of a comprehensive tobacco control program.

CDC is the lead US federal agency for comprehensive tobacco prevention and control, and CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health develops, conducts, and supports strategic efforts to protect the public’s health from the harmful effects of tobacco use.

CDC is a WHO Collaborating Center for Global Tobacco Surveillance and the technical agency for the Global Tobacco Surveillance System (GTSS).CDC’s global tobacco work is supported by the CDC Foundation through donations from the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use and The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Priorities of the Global Branch
  • Strengthen global tobacco surveillance systems to monitor the global tobacco epidemic
  • Increase country and regional capacity to plan, develop, implement, and evaluate comprehensive tobacco control efforts by translating data to action
  • Advance research to promote effective tobacco control programs
  • Strengthen partnerships to leverage resources for efficient and sustainable tobacco control initiatives
Global Tobacco Surveillance System Data

The Global Tobacco Surveillance System Data (GTSSData) is a Web-based application that houses and displays data from four tobacco-related surveys conducted around the world.

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