World No Tobacco Day

World No Tobacco Day
Clear ashtray with a red rose in it.
World No Tobacco Day poster by the WHO
Official nameWorld No Tobacco Day
Observed byAll UN member states
TypeAwareness
Date31 May
Next time31 May 2025 (2025-05-31)
FrequencyAnnual
Related toAbstaining from tobacco
Ash trays with fresh flowers are a common symbol of World No Tobacco Day.

World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) is observed around the world every year on 31 May. The annual observance informs the public on the dangers of using tobacco, the business practices of tobacco companies, what the World Health Organization (WHO) is doing to fight against the use of tobacco, and what people around the world can do to claim their right to health and healthy living and to protect future generations.[1]

The Member States of the WHO created World No Tobacco Day in 1987 to draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and the preventable death and disease it causes. The day is further intended to draw attention to the widespread prevalence of tobacco use and to negative health effects, which currently lead to more than 8 million deaths each year worldwide, including 1.2 million as the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke.[2] The day has been met with both enthusiasm and resistance around the globe from governments, public health organizations, smokers, growers, and the tobacco industry.

  1. ^ "World No Tobacco Day 2021: Theme, History, Quotes, Origin". SA News. 28 May 2020. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  2. ^ "Tobacco Fact Sheet". WHO. Geneva. 24 May 2022. Archived from the original on 19 November 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2015.