More can be done to reduce smoking in China

According to my personal research and observations, it is obviously that more can be done to reduce smoking in China.

First, more could be done to reduce smoking by enforcing the law. The Law on the Protection of Minors stipulates that selling cigarettes to teenagers is strictly forbidden, yet young smokers can always manage to buy what they want from somewhere as a result of weak enforcement of the law. So, if the salesman in China need to check the customers’ ID cards before selling, things may be better.

Next, national wide, smoking bans are best enforced on campuses, high-speed trains and airplanes. The fact is only a few cities such as Beijing and Shanghai have imposed a smoke-free ban in public places. Most cities in China have the slogans ‘No Smoking’ everywhere on the wall, they don’t have a real smoke-free ban in public places.

Besides, the package of cigarettes in China need to show the picture about harm of smoking. Just like the three pictures above shows, the package of cigarette  in China only have the warning words on, which is much more gentle than that in UK.

Last but not least, the most important is the public attitudes towards smoking. In Brighton, people seldom give cigarettes to strangers. While in China, giving strangers a cigarette is a way to show that you want to know him and start talking.  It looks like a culture to show politeness and respects to others. With the development of forbidden-smoking, more and more Chinese people realize the harm of smoking and the second-hand smoking, we look forward to the days that people far away from the cigarettes.