A study of people living in Bangladesh revealed that most men spend a portion of their $24 a month earnings on tobacco products, rather than food, clothing, and housing for themselves and their families.

"An estimated 10.5 million people currently malnourished could have an adequate diet if money on tobacco were spent on food instead," said Dr. Debra Efroymson of PATH Canada in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

In surveying 32,000 Bangladesh households, Efroymson and colleagues found that men aged 35 to 49 had the highest prevalence of tobacco use, with 70.3 percent being smokers. Women's smoking rates were much lower.

Furthermore, the researchers discovered that the rate of smoking increased as income decreased. For instance, among men with a household income below $24 a month, 58.2 percent smoked. Of the men whose household incomes were higher than $118 per month, 32.3 percent smoked.

"Average male cigarette smokers spend more than twice as much on cigarettes as per-capita expenditures on clothing, housing, health, and education combined," the researchers noted.

To encourage people to spend less on tobacco, the researchers recommended that Bangladesh increase taxes on tobacco products and distribute educational information on the dangers of smoking.

"From our research, we conclude that tobacco use is a neglected issue in poverty reduction and that poverty is a neglected issue in tobacco control," wrote Efroymson's team. "A further benefit of tobacco-control measures could be decreased expenditure on non-essential goods and a concurrent improvement in the health and well-being of the poor."

The report is published in the October issue of the journal Tobacco Control.

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