[Tobacco smoking and various measures to control it]

The prevalence of smoking has been studied in a population of a Moscow district. The data obtained evidence that 49.0-54.6% of men and 9.2-13.5% of women, aged 20-59, smoke. Smoking was most common at the age of 20-39 (62.6 and 19.0% for males and females, respectively). Regular smoking was registered in 14.4-53.3% of schoolboys and 0.8-28.2% of schoolgirls (pupils of forms 5-10), the habituation being dependent on the number of smoking relatives. A 5-year prospective investigation of 40-59-year-old males allowed the conclusion on high mortality rate among heavy smokers: a three-fold difference for all reasons and cancer, and 2.5-fold difference for cardiovascular diseases compared to respective mortality in non-smokers. A special age-adjusted program designed for smoking control in schoolchildren produced positive 3-year results: a decrease from 17 to 5.9% in smoking incidence among boys of forms 5-7, from 42.1 to 20.7% for boys and from 9.6 to 6% for girls of higher forms. A pilot experience gained in a special office organized for those willing to give up smoking is presented. The treatment involved acupuncture, chemotherapy and psychotherapy.