Secondhand smoke hits clubs, bars the hardest

Wang Xiaodong

(China Daily USA)

Updated: 2015-05-21

Survey findings come as Beijing prepares to launch toughest tobacco control measures yet

Customers and staff members in Beijing's bars and nightclubs are exposed to the most secondhand smoke in the city, according to a survey by health authorities.

The survey, conducted by the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention and Capital Medical University, was based on inspections of more than 2,500 public places and on questionnaires collected last year from more than 8,000 people in the capital.

A total of 89.5 percent of people in bars and nightclubs are exposed to secondhand smoke, while about 65 percent of people are exposed to it in restaurants. Nearly 40 percent reported facing the problem at home, the survey found.

Less than 4 percent said they were exposed to secondhand smoke in public vehicles, the lowest rate among all types of places, the survey found.

The results were released ahead of the implementation on June 1 of Beijing's toughest tobacco control regulations yet.

Wang Benjin, deputy director of the Beijing Health Inspection Bureau, said it will increase law enforcement in nightclubs and bars after the regulations take effect.

Yang Jie, deputy director of the Tobacco Control Office at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said, "It will be difficult to enforce the regulations in such entertainment venues.

"The health authorities may not have enough law enforcement forces, and I think it would be better if they conducted inspections in cooperation with other government departments at such places," he said.

It is important to improve publicity and education in these places before the regulations take effect, he said.

In an online survey of 100,000 people conducted by the Beijing Tobacco Control Association and news portal NetEase from Friday to Tuesday, 52 percent said they had not heard of the new regulations.

"I believe the problem of smoking will be eased in Beijing in five years with the efforts of the public as a whole," said Guo Jiyong, an official at the Beijing Health and Family Planning Commission. "But it needs time, as it is very difficult for old smokers to quit the habit."

wangxiaodong@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 05/21/2015 page4)