The World Health Organization (WHO) has called on China to enact a national tobacco control law in a report on Monday that said second-hand smoke causes more than 100,000 deaths in the country annually.
According to the report, jointly released by the WTO, International Tobacco Control (ITC) Policy Evaluation Project and Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CCDCP), around 1 million people die from tobacco-related illnesses in China annually and if uncurbed the number could rise to some 3 million by 2050.
It said Chinese citizens' exposure to second-hand smoke is extraordinarily high, with 740 million non-smokers in China -- 182 million children included -- being exposed to second-hand smoke at least once a day in a typical week.
"China is unfortunately a world leader in second-hand smoke exposure: among the countries we work in, China has the highest rate of smoking in workplaces and homes, and among the highest rates in restaurants and bars," said Dr. Geoffrey T. Fong, principal investigator of the ITC project.
When comprehensive smoking bans are effectively implemented and supported, indoor smoking virtually disappears Dr. Fong said, underlining China's need to enact a law.
Dr. Bernhard Schwartlander, WHO representative in China, said the report demonstrated the urgent importance of a national smoke-free law.
The report recognized Beijing's efforts after they adopted the strongest smoke-free law in China, which requires all indoor places to be 100 percent smoke-free. The law sets an excellent precedent for other Chinese cities, it said.
But Liang Xiaofeng, deputy director of CCDCP, said although there have been some smoke-free policies in other Chinese cities, they have been partial and poorly enforced. "We need stronger laws, effective enforcement and mass education campaigns to tell people about the dangers of inhaling second-hand smoke."
The report also found high levels of public support in China for stronger smoke-free policies, even among smokers. Evidence from other countries shows that support will continue to grow after implementation of strong national smoke-free law, it said.
China is the world's largest tobacco-producing and -consuming country, with more than 350 million smokers. Yet only a few provinces and cities have enacted local legislation on public smoking bans, and no special law has been adopted at the national level.
