On Friday, May 31, to celebrate "World No Tobacco Day," the Government of the City of Buenos Aires and LALCEC (La Liga Argentina de Lucha Contra el Cancer) will join forces to raise awareness about the dangers and illnesses caused by cigarettes to both active and passive smokers. From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the busy, pedestrian Florida Street in the heart of the South American capital city, they will attempt to break the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS mark for the most carbon monoxide tests taken in 8 hours.
From simply blowing into a disposable CO monitor, the members of the public will be able to see the level of carbon monoxide in their blood, which is likely to be higher in smokers and those people who live with or are around smokers regularly. This GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS attempt, which will be adjudicated by GWR Latin American representative Ralph Hannah, will make Porteños more aware of the risks posed by smoking. In Argentina, the government estimate that more than 40,000 people die from smoking-related illnesses each year.
“This will be the first attempt of its kind," Hannah said. "However, like other medical screening records, it is very important that everybody conducting the tests are qualified medical professionals and that each participant provides their name and National ID number. Most importantly for the record, we must be able to accurately count the number of people receiving the test.”
The group will need to administer at least 250 tests to GWR criteria in order to earn its GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS achievement.
