1 Overview

The structure of the book is as follows. Following the Overview, there are six sections. Section I provides brief descriptive overviews of global trends in smoking and the impact of tobacco on health, as well as a discussion of the costs of tobacco use. Section II provides an economic analysis of tobacco use, focusing on three key issues: tobacco addiction, the costs and benefits of tobacco use, and the economic rationale for government intervention in the tobacco market. Section III reviews the effectiveness of policies intended to reduce demand for tobacco: the provision of consumer information about tobacco; the impact of advertising and promotion; the taxation of tobacco products; clean indoor-air policies and other regulatory measures; and smoking cessation therapies. Section IV examines issues affecting the supply of tobacco, including a review of the impact of tobacco-control policies on national economies and employment. Section V addresses questions about the design of effective policies, and models the impact of various different control measures on tobacco-related mortality. In this section, there is also a discussion of strategic priorities for international organizations in responding to the global tobacco epidemic. Finally, there are statistical appendices and directions to electronic sources of data on tobacco.