Across the globe, tobacco use is declining. From 2000 to 2022, 150 countries lowered their consumption of the harmful product. Yet certain regions are lagging. Southeast Asia reports the highest percentage of population using tobacco, at 26.5%. Driving that figure is Indonesia—one of the six countries worldwide where tobacco use is increasing.
Recent efforts to control tobacco use in Indonesia, however, have stalled. To lead this week’s edition, journalist Miriam Bahagijo explores how Indonesian Minister of Finance Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa reversed a decision to raise the cigarette excise tax and the recommended minimum selling price of cigarettes, despite criticism from public health advocates and health economists.
Next, TGH focuses on the United States, where eating disorders are rising. Sahana Srikanth, from the Youth Corps of the Strategic Training Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders, describes how these conditions thrive in marginalized populations and the cultural barriers that discourage those people from seeking help.
As Thanksgiving nears, the resurgent bird flu outbreak is still pummeling poultry across the United States. To round off the week, Managing Editor Nsikan Akpan gives an update on how turkeys are faring—and explains why consumers could experience some surprise relief as they shop for their Thanksgiving birds.
