Gaining health : analysis of policy development in European ...

Chapter 4
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companies. Nevertheless, large hoardings advertising tobacco
products still feature prominently on Greek roads.
A number of NGOs, including the Hellenic Cancer Society
and the Hellenic Anti-smoking Society, provide information
on the risks of smoking and support for smoking cessation.
Television spots provided by the EU have recently become
much more intensive.
A move towards stronger tobacco control was apparent
early in 2006, when at a public discussion organized by the
Hellenic Anti-Smoking Society for the WHO anti-tobacco
day, the Minister for Health and Social Solidarity, Dimitris
Avramopoulos, stressed the severity of the problem in
Greece and stated his intention of developing a comprehensive
anti-smoking policy. At a similar event on 31 May
2007, the Minister announced that a draft law developed in
collaboration with related ministries was being formulated,
aimed mainly at dissuading young people from smoking.
According to the press release, the main provisions of the
draft law will include the following provisions.
• The direct and indirect advertising of tobacco products,
including the sale of toys in the form of tobacco products,
will be banned.
• Packages containing fewer than 20 cigarettes will be
banned.
• Tobacco products must include a label stating that they
are not to be sold to people less than 18 years of age.
• A special Tobacco Control Agency (EFEK) is to be
established with responsibility for related research,
monitoring of the implementation of the law and the
development of antismoking policies and action strategies;
• Those selling tobacco must be licensed and part of the
cost of the licence will go to EFEK to be used for antismoking
measures.
• The Health and Welfare Inspectors of the MHSS will be
responsible for checking on implementation of the law,
as will specially formed groups plus the newly established
social volunteers, who will check on places of
entertainment, offices etc. to see that they implement
the law.
• Internet cafes and other places where young people
meet will be smoke-free.
2.6.2. Nutrition policy
In the early part of the twentieth century, a chair of
nutrition was established in the newly founded School of
Hygiene, and by 1938 a report on the problems of nutrition
in Greece had already been prepared (26). Within a few
years, however, the nutrition chair remained empty and the
Second World War brought a tragic situation whereby, particularly
in Athens, people were dying of hunger. Following
the War, the Ministry of Agriculture concentrated on dealing
with nutrient deficiency, deploying home economists in
rural areas to help improve eating habits. This concentration
on ensuring enough food continued for many years.
In the early 1960s, WHO embarked on a study that was to
last for 30 years, investigating the dietary habits of people
aged 40–59 years in 7 countries, including Greece. The results
showed that people living in Mediterranean countries,
and especially Greece, had the lowest mortality rates from
cancer and coronary heart disease and had the longest life
expectancy. The causes were thought to include working
outdoors and physical activity combined with a sparse and
simple diet whereof most of the fat came from olive oil and
fish (what became known globally as the “Mediterranean
diet”).
By 1980, however, the (renamed) School of Public Health
had been examining changes in eating habits and disease
patterns in Greece, on the basis of which Professor
Polychronopoulou-Trichopoulou wrote to the Ministry of
Agriculture and the Ministry of Social Services suggesting
the need for a nutrition policy. Despite intermittent interest
from the public sector and the establishment of the Greek
Case studies: policy development in countries for tackling noncommunicable diseases