Successful Global Campaigns for the Prevention of Tobacco Use Among Children and Adolescents Reviewed at the Second Session of the “Tobacco-Free Life” Campaign
The second specialized session of the “Tobacco-Free Life” campaign was held on Tuesday, 30 December 2025, organized by the Office of Health Education and Health Promotion of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education
According to the Public Relations Office of the Association, the session was attended by Dr. Shahram Rafiifar, Director General of the Office of Health Education and Health Promotion; Dr. Sarbandi, Head of the Health Education and Promotion Group; Dr. Behzad Valizadeh, Head of the Secretariat of the National Tobacco Control Headquarters; Engineer Hashemi, expert at the Secretariat; Dr. Sharif Torkamanzhad, Scientific Advisor of the Association; and Farideh Khodadadi, Head of Public Relations of the Iranian Anti-Tobacco Association.
During the meeting, Dr. Sharif Torkamanzhad presented a comparative study of successful global tobacco prevention campaigns, focusing on effective strategies for preventing tobacco use among children and adolescents under the age of 18. He outlined the key characteristics, approaches, and achievements of these international campaigns.
Subsequently, participants discussed several related topics, including the design of warning posters tailored for occupational settings, the presentation of social media monitoring reports, and the findings of a monitoring study on domestic home entertainment productions depicting tobacco use.
Based on the resolutions of the session, it was decided that the social media monitoring report in Iran and the study on home entertainment content monitoring, conducted by the Iranian Anti-Tobacco Association, would be shared with members of the working group. In addition, the presentation of the Icelandic and Stanford media models was scheduled for the next session, with the aim of selecting and developing localized media content and models adapted to national conditions.
In another resolution, the responsibility for designing warning signage posters prohibiting tobacco use in public and governmental places was assigned to the Office of Health Education and Health Promotion.
It is noteworthy that the first session of the “Tobacco-Free Life” campaign was held on Tuesday, 23 December 2025, with the participation of representatives from the National Tobacco Control Headquarters, the Ministry of Health, and the Iranian Anti-Tobacco Association.
This series of meetings will continue.
