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Implications and priorities of tobacco control in Belgium and Europe

CORRESPONDENCE: P. Bartsch, Service de Pneumologie, CHU Sart Tilman, Liège, Belgium. Fax: 32 3667007. E-mail: pierre.bartsch{at}ulg.ac.be

The present article aims to define what tobacco control is both in Europe and around the world. The situation of tobacco control in Belgium will be compared to other European countries using the tobacco control scale (TCS). If countries demonstrating a high TCS score have lower tobacco smoking prevalence than countries with a low TCS, it is not known whether the decrease in smoking prevalence over several years is well correlated with the increase in TCS score in each country during the same period.

Moreover the article will raise the question of how far research will continue control into controlling the use of tobacco.

The remaining 20% of smokers in the best tobacco control scale countries who are still smoking are not similar to the 20% that are now ex-smokers. Indeed we are now facing the "hard core smokers", who show great resistance to policy measures and be considered as ill individuals requiring specialised care rather than individuals with bad habits. The future tobacco control scale should place more importance on the quality of care and the implication of European countries providing improved access to this form of care and validated forms of treatment of this chronic, difficult to treat disease.

KEYWORDS: Legislation, tobacco control