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Non-smoking culture needed
2006-06-02
China Daily
The current campaign to curb the use of tobacco should be stepped up and measures should be taken to make smoking a less acceptable practice, says a signed article in Shanghai-based Wenhui News. An excerpt follows:
Figures released on World No Tobacco Day serve as a source of frustration for everyone who wants to curb smoking in China. The country has 350 million smokers.
People cannot help but wonder why efforts to cut the number of smokers have proven to be so futile.
First of all, the lucrative profits of the tobacco industry have prevented decision-makers from taking determined action, and they even turn a blind eye towards the various measures used by the tobacco industry to recruit more smokers.
Apart from that, numerous factors are to blame for the current situation.
The current campaign mainly focuses on the impact of smoking on people's health.
Smokers are six times more likely to be infertile and have a greater chance of becoming disabled, while women who smoke have a higher chance of contracting breast cancer.
Reading these figures, many smokers will dismiss them as mere "chances" instead of real facts.
Therefore, any campaign to curb smoking can hardly be successful when this bad habit remains such a part of everyday life.
Tobacco advertisements are everywhere, while movie stars also set a bad example by lighting up. These facts only serve to make smoking be seen as something acceptable.
The most effective way to stop people smoking is to let them know about the personal experiences of smokers suffering as a result of their bad habit.
Only after the harm done by tobacco is vividly described to smokers and potential smokers in a way that they understand, can they muster enough resolve to quit smoking.
At the same time, harsher measures should also be taken, such as cracking down on smoking in public places and penalizing those who sell cigarettes to juveniles.
All of this will help make a contribution to altering the mindset of the millions of people who regard smoking as something acceptable and normal.
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