Cigarettes in Canada will now carry warnings such as "POISON IN EVERY PUFF" and "Cigarettes cause erectile dysfunction," the government announced, in an effort to make ignoring health warnings more difficult.

The first of its kind in the world, this measure is part of a wide-ranging new set of tobacco regulations that will come into effect on Tuesday, which will see strict restrictions implemented over the next two years.

"Tobacco kills 48,000 Canadians annually," said former Minister of Mental Health and Addiction Carolyn Bennett when the rules were first announced, "the measure is based on us being the first country in the world to place health warnings on individual cigarettes."

The government says that about 13 percent of Canadians smoke tobacco, costing the public health system more than $6 billion annually. In 1965, for example, about half of Canadians were smokers. However, with increasing public awareness of the dangers of smoking, rates have steadily declined. Federal and provincial legislation related to the sale, smoking, taxation, and disclosure of tobacco has also led to a decrease in smoking rates among all age groups.

Canada was the first country in the world to require cigarette manufacturers to place warning labels with pictures on cigarette packages in 2001. In the following decade, a ban on smoking in indoor spaces was imposed.