The messages, however, will not only become bigger but also much more various and scary. Apart from traditional warnings that smoking is harmful to health, there will be 12 new ones informing smokers that their habit can lead to impotence and infertility, cause heart attacks and strokes, as well as result in “slow and painful death.”

The messages will also advise tobacco lovers to protect children from smoke and visit a doctor in case they cannot give up the dangerous habit.

In addition, cigarette packs will contain information about the blend in each cigarette. Health officials say this is a major breakthrough.

“At last we’ll be able to regulate the proportions of tobacco and additives a cigarette includes. This is very important,” Ministry of Health representative Yury Voronin was quoted as saying by Interfax news agency.

Although smokers doubt the effectiveness of such anti-tobacco campaigns, its authors say that their main target will be teenagers easily exposed to advertising and peer pressure.

“Tobacco companies can afford the best advertisers and their efforts are often directed at women who want to look stylish,” Irina Morozova from the World Lung Foundation told RT. “Now if a girl wants to get a fancy pack of cigarettes out of her bag, it won’t look that glamorous anymore.”

An estimated 350,000-500,000 Russians die every year from diseases connected with smoking.

About 50 million women inhale smoke during pregnancy. Meanwhile, even passive smoking can result in premature delivery and miscarriage. Smoking parents’ children are more exposed to sudden infant death, respiratory diseases and other health and development problems.