Within the framework of the World Tobacco Cessation Day, a conference on the topic "Nicotine addiction and smoking mixtures, the impact on mental health, features of the clinic and prevention at the present stage" was held at the Astana Medical University (MUA) with the support of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Annually on May 31, the entire world community celebrates World No Tobacco Day, officially proclaimed by WHO in 1988.

The tobacco epidemic is one of the most serious threats to public health. More than 8 million people die from it every year. More than 7 million of them are tobacco users and former tobacco users, and more than 1.2 million are non–smokers exposed to second—hand tobacco smoke.

This date is designed to draw the attention of all people, in all countries, to the problem of tobacco smoking, which causes huge damage to health and leads to fatal diseases.

Smoking worsens the condition of the skin, nails, hair, destroys teeth, leads to bad breath, from clothes. Smoking is directly related to the development of diseases often incompatible with life, such as lung cancer, heart attack.

         The conference was attended and delivered by Dr. Vitaly Stetsik, Technical expert of the WHO country office in Kazakhstan, Deputy Director of the Department of Organization of Medical Care of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan Gulnara Sarsenbayeva, Acting Chairman of the Board of the NCOZ of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Candidate of Medical Sciences Zhanar Kalmakova, leader of the National Coalition "For Kazakhstan Free of Tobacco Smoke" Jamila Sadykova, as well as resident doctors of the Department of Psychiatry and Narcology of the MUA Dildora Kakharova and Kamila Kudarova.