Health units in Southwestern Ontario, including Chatham-Kent, are joining the fight to standardize tobacco packaging.
By supporting this initiative they are recommending that the Government of Canada make all tobacco packaging plain.
This means, tobacco companies would only be able to display their brand name and health warnings. Everything else including colours, pictures, logos, and fancy fonts would be prohibited.
The program manager of chronic disease and injury prevention at the Chatham-Kent Health Unit, Carina Caryn, says the purpose behind this initiative is to eliminate any appeal the packaging may have, especially towards children.
"This is kind of one of the last areas [regarding tobacco] where we see there would be some significant health benefits," says Caryn.
The decision to endorse the initiative was made during Wednesday's Board of Health meeting.
"This is really just all of our health units [in Southwestern Ontario] saying we support this strategy, we believe it's important," says Caryn, adding, the endorsements from various health units will be sent to The Canadian Council for Action on Tobacco, where it'll then go to Health Canada.
