The Hidden Costs of Big Tobacco

The devastating impact of tobacco on the health of users is well known. In addition to the negative effects for the individual, there are significant economic and environmental consequences, which need to be considered when developing efforts to end an industry that kills more than 7 million users each year.

This editorial, published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, provides an overview of some of the hidden costs of tobacco use and the measures different countries are introducing in an attempt to reduce the different forms of harm.