I am not sure that the WHO understands human nature. Kids will start collecting gross cigarette packs and use them for trading cards. A huge business opportunity will arise to create cigarette cases that may be sparkly or have cool graphics and perhaps even cartoon characters. The cigarette packs will be discarded. The unintended consequences could be quite huge. What will the WHO do then? I would suggest they butt out. Smoking on TV or in the movies gives parents a great opportunity to talk with their kids about tobacco. The WHO should not be interfering in a matter that is the parents responsibility.

As Rebecca points out, they would become collector items for young people. I guess my question would be how helpful are the gross pictures, as it has been proven that scare tactics are not as effective as we would like. I have had a few people who say that they might quit, however, if there was a gross picture on the pack. So in my opinion it is a "catch 22" whether or not this is effective or not and does it warrant the change. It could blow up in all our faces and make cigarette smoking popular again just to get the pictures. I can see young people being inticed rather than deterred.

I disagree!!! I think it is a great idea. As a smoker I literally put down my cigerette when I see a billboard about lung cancer. They wouldnt be pictures of cabbage patch kids smoking cigerettes. They would be pictures of blackened lungs and gum disease. I think this would work, because the surgeons warning that smoking may cause heart disease does not show graphic pictures of what that really means. Next they should put a shocker on the pack so I get shocked everytime I reach for it ;0)

I hate to continually repeat myself, but, what about Health Warning Labels on all liquor containers ? Hhmmmmmmmmm ?

1. Good luck fighting through that proposal against the determined resistance of well-moneyed oligarchs. Meanwhile: 2. A missed opportunity to wise up customers starts on the side of each individual cigarette: a. where the name of the brand appears, require the net weight (mg.) to be printed in at least as large print as the brand name ("700 mg. net weight" or simply "700mg" etc.). b. on the outside of each 20-pack and 200-carton require a diagram showing how to serve a 25-mg. single serving in a long-stemmed one-hitter (i.e. without lighting up the whole 700-mg. unit at one time like the suckers do now). The cartoon might show a tiny piece being torn off a standard 3-inch overdose and inserted in the crater orf the one-hitter, and how to hold and light the one-hitter with that tiny 25-mg. pinch of cigarette tobacco in its crater. c. Require the retail store having a license to sell cigarettes to exhibit the above information about a single-toke one-hitter on a sign at least as large as the largest sign in the store advertising cigarettes, and to have verifiable standard single-toke utensils for sale on the premises. This positive approach would aim to provide the customers with options how to control their habit rather than just scare them some more.

I have to agree with Rebecca on this one. I recently saw a new york smokers quit line commercial talking about fatty deposits in the arteries of smokers, this turned into the running joke with some people saying it was "time for a fatty deposit" instead of "time for a smoke" one even mimiced the ad. While these images were graphic, I think most smokers know the health risks, but take an "it won't happen to me" or "i've got time until i have to quit" approach. Although I hate taxation and governement intrusion into peoples lives, I think that is the best deterrent. just my $0.02.

Just an FYI-I have found showing brain images of alcohol/drug abuse an effective deterrent for early stage users ie http://www.amenclinics.com/brain-science/spect-image-gallery/spect-atlas/images-of-alcohol-and-drug-abuse/ Showing graphic images on cigarette packages is just showing what tends to be a (longer term)"natural consequence" to engaging in such behaviour and therefore creating a negative association (in the present) with smoking. Working with some nicotine addicted clients who now have emphysema, they would do just about anything to "get their life back". My belief of (graphically) showing the risk & consequences is providing the potential consumer/child with a more informed choice.