Friday, July 20, 2012

Some seemingly ignored Italian health warnings


We just got back from Italy. We spent time in the following cities: Venice, Bologna, Florence, Pisa and Rome. At all stops along the way we were blown away (literally) by the number of folks who were smoking. Cigarette machines, with often very young folks making a purchase, seemed to be everywhere. 

The whole time I kept wondering, "do Italian cigarette packs have a health warning?"

Surprisingly they do. I would have guessed not. Here's what I found concerning the health warnings on Italian packs when I returned home:
Il fumo uccide
(Smoking kills)
  • Il fumo uccide / Il fumo può uccidere. (Smoking kills / Smoking may kill)
  • Il fumo danneggia gravemente te e chi ti sta intorno. (Smoking heavily damages you and whoever is near you)
  • I fumatori muoiono prima. (Smokers die early.)
  • Il fumo ostruisce le arterie e provoca infarti e ictus. (Smoking clogs arteries and causes heart diseases and strokes)
  • Il fumo provoca cancro mortale ai polmoni. (Smoking causes fatal lung cancer.)
  • Fumare in gravidanza fa male al bambino. (Smoking during pregnancy harms the baby.)
  • Proteggi i bambini, non fumare in loro presenza. (Protect the kids, don't smoke in their presence.)
  • Il medico o il tuo farmacista possono aiutarti a smettere di fumare. (Your doctor or your pharmacist may help you quit smoking.)
  • Specialisti del settore medico possono aiutarti a smettere di fumare. (Specialists in the medical profession may help you quit smoking.)
  • Il fumo crea un'elevata dipendenza, non iniziare. (Smoking is highly addictive, don't start.)
  • Smettere di fumare riduce il rischio di malattie cardiovascolari e polmonari mortali. (Quitting smoking reduces the risk of deadly cardiovascular and lung diseases.)
  • Il fumo può provocare una morte lenta e dolorosa. (Smoking can cause a long and painful death.)
  • Il fumo provoca il cancro della cavità orale. (Smoking causes oral cancer.)
  • Fatti aiutare a smettere di fumare. (Let us help you quit smoking.)
  • Il fumo può ridurre la circolazione sanguigna e causa impotenza. (Smoking may reduce blood circulation and cause impotency.)
  • Il fumo invecchia la pelle. (Smoking ages the skin.)
  • Il fumo può danneggiare lo sperma e diminuisce la fertilità. (Smoking may damage sperm and diminish fertility.)
  • Il fumo contiene benzene, nitrosammine, formaldeide e acido cianidrico. (Cigarettes contain benzene, nistrosamine, formaldehyde and hydrocyanic acid)

I looked at a few discarded packs while there but couldn't translate the messages at the time. The few Italian words I picked up only included Grazie, Prego, Si, No, and, of course, my most frequently spoken Italian word, Gelato.

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