Okesina Urges Govt To Ban Smoking

A Professor of Chemical Pathology at the University of Ilorin, Adekunle Bashiru Okesina, has called on the government to enact laws to ban or curb smoking in Nigeria because smoking is one habit that has no medical benefit but is rather a harbinger of many diseases.

Prof. Okesina made this call while delivering his inaugural lecture entitled: Chemical Pathologist: The Final Judge in Health and in Diseases, at the university auditorium.

According to the don: “It is very unfortunate that as the Western countries are making legislations to stop or reduce smoking, our government has closed their eyes to the evils attached to it, because of little financial gain. This is the only way we can explain the big cigarette making factory that sprang up at the Oyo State end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway not long ago.”

He said according to research, the prevalence of smoking among patients in Nigeria was relatively low compared with Western countries, pointing out that for this reason it was suggested that doctors and health care providers must continue to emphasize the harmful effect of smoking, especially among diabetics and hypertensive patients.

He also revealed that the research result of his investigation showed that there are more male smokers than females.

The Professor of Pathology stressed that smoking has been reported to cause increased insulin requirements. This, he noted, may be due to smoking, hampering subcutaneous blood flow and reducing insulin absorption from the subcutaneous tissue.

He submitted that if the pathological problems in such individuals are detected early by investigations that can be carried out by pathologists and radiologists, they can be protected from catastrophe.

To help prevent atherosclerosis, the don suggested the avoidance of fatty foods, eating well-balanced meals that are low in animal fats and cholesterol, including several daily servings of fruits and  green vegetables and giving preference to eating of fish and chicken (without skin) in one’s diet. He recommended an annual general medical check for everybody from age 35 upwards.

He also urged government to facilitate the screening of newborns for error of metabolism in order to protect children who may be infected if not treated early.

According to him, screening new-born babies for metabolism error could be done through the Local Government Councils nationwide and linked with the registration of births which is already in place.