The youth have been called upon to stay away from tobacco to maintain their health to become useful citizens. Mr. Edwin T. Adams a Senior Nursing Officer at the Accra Psychiatric Hospital, made the call at a forum on tobacco in Accra on Saturday organised by the Ghana Muslim Academy.

It was under the theme, "The harmful effects of Tobacco among the youth".

Mr. Adams explained that tobacco products including cigarettes, cigars, chewing tobacco and snuff were prepared from the leaf, Nicotiana Tabacum.

He said the nicotine and tar found in the leaf was very harmful to health, adding that, gases like hydrogen cyanide, nitrous oxides and carbon monoxide, which were formed and released with cigarette smoking, were also harmful Mr. Adams said nicotine was a highly addictive stimulant, which affected the central nervous system soon after absorption through the lungs, the mouth or intestine.

"Nicotine, increases the heart rate and at the same time narrows the passages in the blood vessels, thus inhibiting free passage of blood and oxygen throughout the body," he stressed.

The Senior Nursing Officer also advised pregnant women to desist from smoking since they were likely to affect the growth and retard the development of the fetus while they could experience a spontaneous abortion "They may have their babies dying soon after birth or where the baby survives, there is the possibility of impairment in early childhood growth and development, he warned.

Sheikh Ibrahim Ibn Sanaa a Pharmacy Technician of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital also advised parents to take active interest in the education of their wards.

Mr. Labaran Musah, Publicity Officer of the Ghana Muslim Academy entreated Muslims to lead exemplary lives worthy of emulation and expressed the hope that the forum would serve the purpose it was intended.

GNA