Project Brief / Introduction:

Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) represent a major global health burden. In 2023, approximately 44 million deaths were attributed to NCDs, accounting for about 75% of all deaths worldwide. Across all regions of Asia, NCDs were responsible for more than 70% of total deaths. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes are the four major categories of NCDs, together accounting for approximately 80% of all premature deaths from NCDs.

Tobacco use, exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS), alcohol consumption, obesity, and metabolic syndrome are major risk factors that substantially increase the incidence of NCDs and NCD-related mortality in Asia and globally. Therefore, this study aims to report the prevalence of tobacco use, SHS exposure, alcohol consumption, and metabolic syndrome across 26 Asian countries. In addition, we estimate the burden of NCDs attributable to these risk factors.

Project Objectives:

To describe the prevalence of tobacco use, SHS exposure, alcohol consumption, and metabolic syndrome across 26 Asian countries and estimate the burden of NCDs attributable to these risk factors.