On May 30, 2025, a roundtable discussion and press conference was held to mark World No Tobacco Day 2025: Exposing the Illusion of Attractiveness

On May 30, 2025, Ukrinform hosted a roundtable discussion and press conference dedicated to World No Tobacco Day 2025: Exposing the Illusion of Attractiveness.

The event was organized by the WHO Office in Ukraine and the Special Initiative for NCDs and Innovation of the WHO Regional Office for Europe.

The event was attended by government agencies, representatives of parliament, public health institutions, media, and civil society.

During the event, WHO and partners presented data on adolescent use of tobacco and nicotine products in 2023 according to the GYTS survey, as well as provided a comparative analysis with previous rounds of similar studies in 2005, 2012 and 2017, which were conducted with the participation of specialists from the State Institution «Marzieiev Institute for Public Health of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine.» Data were also presented on the tactics of attractiveness of tobacco and nicotine products, especially for children and youth, which are used in this industry.

The discussion focused on the impact of regulatory measures, exposing marketing tactics of the tobacco industry, anti-tobacco measures in educational institutions, etc.

The State Institution «Marzieiev Institute for Public Health of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine» participated in this round table:

Svitlana HOZAK – Head of the Laboratory of the Social Determinants of Population Health

and

Nataliia YATSKOVSKA is a Leading Researcher at the Laboratory of the Safety of Children’s Population Vital Functions.

Doctor of Medical Sciences, Svitlana HOZAK emphasized during the roundtable discussion the scientific research that is currently being carried out at the Institute on tobacco smoking, in particular, she said that according to the Laboratory of the Social Determinants of Population Health, a significant proportion of students (29.9% in 2023-2024) used smoking as a coping strategy to overcome stress during the war, and in 2025, according to preliminary data, this proportion is approaching 50%, and 30.1% of students smoke daily. The research is ongoing. Svitlana HOZAK also emphasized the priority of applying comprehensive strategies to preserve public health in the face of modern challenges.

A recording of the video broadcast of the keynotes is available here:

(date of publication on the website 30.05.2025)