JIN-422 -- Smoke on the Horizon?

What I think is more interesting about the smoking statistics in Japan is the Male/Female split. You mentioned that a quarter of the population smokes but when you just look at the male population it is over 40%. Looking at just Tokyo I don't think you'd guess that (so I suppose the gap must be wider in the country side). There are not many developed nations with such a high smoker incidence.
On the contrary, Women smokers are rare and falling in number. You mentioned in the article that it was becoming "cool" and incidence was increasing, is that just based on Tokyo? I'm pretty sure that the figure was 12.4% last year (vs 13.8% in 2005 and 14.7% back in 2001). Sure the absolute fall has been slower than for Men but on such a low base it is not really so surprizing.
These days everyone talks about the impact of the baby boomer generation retiring. Any idea what that will do to tobacco usage in the country? Do people smoke more or less after they retire? Everyone knows that (really) old people smoke less than middle-aged people but does anyone know when (or more importantly why) they stop?

Pulease,

what a transparently goofy attempt to excuse the public health scourge that is tobacco.

First, only 12 year olds can possibly imagine that smoking is cool. The vast majority of folks nowadays when they see someone smoking think,there goes another idiot who is so hooked on nicotine that he cannot free himself.

Second, confounding smoking with freedom as you attempt to do in the latter part of your piece is ridiculous. As if smoking were like freedom of speech. Words do not cause cancer. Let me make this so clear that it will penetrate any smoke screen you choose to create, smokers have no rights at all to harm others. None.

Last, you amazingly somehow do not mention at all the damage of second hand smoke. Kids in Japan, even those that do not live in a smokers home, have indications of tobacco poisoning in their blood. That is something smokers have to be proud of when they light up in crowded areas or walk the streets while smoking. Second hand smoke causes instant damage to those that are forced to inhale it. But as the author of this piece it seems more important to you to try to promote smoking as an act of freedom in Japan. Grow up. Smoking is a public health issue just like any other source of disease. Like any other narcotic it needs to be strictly controlled and its addicts need to get help. Just like heroin addicts.

I tangled with Japan Inc on this issue years ago. I am disappointed that after all these years your tobacco addiction still trumps good sense and basic human decency.

Yes, gather round and listen. Millions of people all over the world enjoy lighting up a ciggie and relaxing. So it can't be that bad. Some of the hottest girls I've dated have sexily sucked on a filter and blew the smoke up into the air. And what about all those well-tanned surfer guys that appear on the ciggie ads. Pretty **** hunky, yes?

Hmmm…let's pull back the curtain a bit and have a closer look.

1. According to the BMA, 80% of smokers kids grow up to be smokers themselves. Niiiiice...

2. Smokers rarely get to see their grandchildren grow up...because they're often dead by then. Yeah, I know, "there's this guy who's 90 and smokes 20 a day"...blah blah blah

3. Smokers generally have bad breath. Pretty nasty too. Of course, smokers don’t realise this because they can’t smell it themselves (similar to the way we can’t smell our own body odour). Perhaps the warning on a packet should read “Your breath stinks”. That might take away some of the “glamour”.

4. Smokers look pretty ***** don’t you think? Check it out for yourself. Go into a Tully’s café and look through the glass at the faces of the people in the smoking section. Then look at the faces of the non-smokers. Holy Moses…

Apart from that, I'd say your article is
1. Poorly researched seeing as you don't even mention "Kenkou Zoushin Law Dai25Jou"
2. Badly written eg that connection of freedom, smoking and Islamist bombers. What are you thinking?
3. Looks like it passed the editor's desk untouched. Oh hang on…you are the editor :)

[Editor's Note: offensive language has been edited out from this post in accordance with our editorial policy]

I was horrified to hear from my wife, who pours cups of tea at head office of Itochu, that Itochu will have a smoking section in the cafe where she works from next month. My wife was happy that she had a clean and smokefree workplace. As it is Itochu severely lacks in tea pourers and now several of the staff are considering quitting. I know smokers think that their habit is somehow good for socializing, but I seriously doubt the Itochu CEO, Eizo Kobayashi's judgment on allowing smoking in his building.
My wife will quit (we are thinking of having a baby and health is really important for us) and Itochu will have one less employee.

Hi Peter,

Thanks for your article on Japan's smoking. As I report across Asia for Asian and Japanese media, I have reported oftern on Japanese Smoking that is slowly killing the population (and their families) from the effects of active and passive smoking

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare Jinko dotai tokei 2004 report a drastic rise in cancer and a rise in cerebral haemorrage and heart disease from 1935 - 2004.

http://fpcj.jp/old/e/mres/publication/ff/pdf/02_population.pdf see page 23 Trends in causes of death.

This may be attributed to smoking and the thirty or so years that it takes for the cancer from cigarettes often to develop.

While the Ministry of Health promote the dangers of smoking, the Finance Dept pocket the taxes from cigarettes.

Thank goodness for Starbucks in Japan which I do not go to in any other country - it is the only smoke free restaurant I could find.

Here in Australia we are smoke free all inside places and loving it.

I come to Japan at least once - twice per year for my research for articles and lectures

cheers

Carole Goldsmith

I often read or hear argument between smokers and non smokers, and it inevitably revolves around tobacco. I think smokers miss the point.
Personally I don't care whether you smoke or not - it is you right to do whatever you want in my opinion.
However when you inflict what you 'want' on others is where the argument starts.
Smokers say it is their right, but let me have you imagine this. Lets say a guy walks into a closed room, with a group of smokers, who are all happily smoking away. They ask him "mind if we smoke" and he says "you do what you want and I will do what I want", at which point he opens his jar of rotten eggs, letting the gas escape, and sits there with a look of bliss on his face. Imagine the feeling of disgust and horror the smokers would have.
Now you may understand the way non-smokers feel about smokers. Do it in your own space, remember how far the stink travels. Imagine if you were walking down the street smoking (while the guy behind you is desperately trying to get in front of you so he doesn't need to be in your 'slipstream of smoke'), and suddenly the guy in front opened his rotten egg gas for you... again, imagine your disgust.
Wake up - consider others.

I don't know who invented cigarettes, I am a smoker and I am not proud of it . Tobacco has become a serious political and economical problem but it is also a social problems as it cause a large number of deaths world wide. I don't agree with smoking in public places and this should not be a debate, it's best to accept things. I seriously thinking to give up smoking and attend a drug rehab program as I don't think I can do it alone.

I think that cigarettes and smoking should be made illegal ...it is as bad as any other drug or narcotic....it kills you slow..

In U.S. legal context, narcotic refers to opium, opium derivatives, and their semi-synthetic or fully synthetic substitutes "as well as cocaine and coca leaves," which although classified as "narcotics" in the U.S. Controlled Substances Act (CSA), are chemically not narcotics. Contrary to popular belief, marijuana is not a narcotic, nor are LSD and other psychedelic drugs.

For chewing tobacco, dipping tobacco and snuff, which are held in the mouth between the lip and gum, or taken in the nose, the amount released into the body tends to be much greater than smoked tobacco.

Nevertheless, because smoking is such a powerful risk factor for the development of coronary atherosclerosis (hardening and blockage of the arteries of the heart), heart disease is by far the most common cause of death in smokers.

These are some interesting and scary facts about tobacco use in Japan. 30 million people are smokers??? This is a huge number considering their restrictive tobacco history. I think 2010 is to soon to reduce the number of smokier to a half.

Apologies in advance for an overlong post.

As an avid non-smoker and long-term resident of Osaka, I try to maintain an optimistic outlook on the vexing issue of second-hand smoke in this country.

There have been some positive developments in the past ten years or so. While merely anecdotal, here are some "green shoots" I've noticed:

(1) Some recent live concerts I've attended (Tommy Guerrero, Arcade Fire, Yo La Tengo -- each at a different venue in Osaka) have successfully instigated a non-smoking policy. Encouragingly, at all three concerts almost all of the patrons abided by the policy -- quite an achievement in the 20-30 y.o. rock 'n' roll demographic. This shows that a wider smoking ban at all concert venues would be feasible.

(2) Smoke-free office spaces are increasingly becoming the norm. My own company office became smoke-free three years ago when we moved into a new building with a more enlightened building-wide non-smoking policy. Smokers can get their fix outside or on the top floor balcony, so aren't overly inconvenienced. Also, they no doubt smoke less, now that they need to make a special trip away from their desks. Big health wins all round.

(3) Given the population density in large Japanese cities, it's impressive how few people violate the non-smoking rules in public spaces (subway platforms, trains, underground courseways etc.). Perhaps this merely reflects the stereotype of Japanese as more rule-abiding than Westerners, but it gives one hope that any future smoking bans in restaurants etc will be followed.

While I may despise second-hand smoke -- and as a life-long asthmatic, believe me, I do -- I strongly believe in protecting people's freedom to put into their body whatever they like. Since tobacco will never be outlawed, we should consider it a healthcare issue first, and a point of etiquette second.

Tobacco addiction should be treated in a similar way to alcohol or drug addiction. I agree with The Economist's position of de-criminalising all drugs and focusing on educating kids and rehabilitating users who have problems with their chosen drug.

When it comes to the etiquette of second-hand smoke, Japan is still quite a long way behind the West. As alluded to in a previous post, JT has made a half-hearted attempt to address this with their "Smoking Clean" ashtrays and quasi-humorous Smoking Etiquette campaign http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Tobacco#Smoking_etiquette_posters

These ads fall quite a long way short of the kind of shocking imagery seen in anti-smoking ads in Canada, NZ, etc. And surely Japan's Ministry of Health, not its biggest tobacco company, should be the one designing these ads.

Anyway, here's to smoke-free bars and restaurants, and being able to taste your sushi and knock back a ji-biiru without choking on your neighbour's fumes!

John B
Osaka