The Kuwait Center for Poison Control was inaugurated Wednesday by the Minister of Health, Dr. Ahmad Al-Awadhi. The center specializes in following up on poisoning cases, providing advice and treatment plans, controlling toxic substances, and coordinating with the concerned state authorities. In a press statement, the minister said that the center carries out a number of tasks and provides information based on scientific evidence regarding poisoning cases. Dr. Abdullatif Al-Oumi, the Center's Head, emphasized that the center specializes in organizing laboratory tests for toxins, preparing poisoning studies, coordinating with concerned authorities to monitor toxic substances, and training medical personnel.

Also, Dr. Al-Oumi noted that poisoning cases dealt with by the center include cases of poisoning caused by nutritional supplements, medicines, medical preparations, chemicals, narcotics, toxic fumes, foods, biological or radioactive toxins, heavy metal toxins, plants, or poisoning caused by poisonous mushrooms, snake bites, scorpions, or marine organisms of all kinds. Meanwhile, Kuwait’s Ministry of Health launched Wednesday an awareness campaign on the harms of tobacco, in cooperation with the National Anti-Smoking Program. Vice President of the Health Ministry’s National Anti-Smoking Program Dr Ahmad Al-Shatti said in a speech during the campaign launch that the ministry is working to reduce the number of smokers due to its negative effects on human health. Al-Shatti noted that smoking is not a “masculine behavior and includes both genders,” which calls for raising the level of awareness as well as control of sales of tobacco, preventing smoking in public places, and stop advertising and promoting it. In his statement, Dr Abeer Al-Bahou, Head of the Health Promotion Department and member of the National Anti-Smoking Program, said that tobacco harms “our health as well as the planet,” adding that the campaign aims to encourage governments to stop cultivating tobacco and to switch to crops that support farmers in improving food security and nutrition.