In your country, your culture, is tobacco consumption regulated? If it is the case, do you think this regulation is justified? Too strict? Not strict enough? Is it customary to smoke in the street, in public transports, at the office, in hospitals, restaurants, and in hotels at breakfast? Are there many places that sell cigarettes, cigars, tobacco? Are there any helps to quit smoking?
In many European Union countries, such as France and Belgium since 2007, but also Switzerland and Canada, smoking is banned in public places, such as in public transports. Smoking is banned in all enclosed and covered areas open to the public or serving as a workplace: offices, hospitals, shops
, train stations, underground car parks.
In Europe, smoking is allowed on café or restaurant outside sitting areas, or in smoking rooms that have a ventilation system. This is not the case in Canada.
An increasing number of people sometimes use electronic cigarettes to quit smoking tobacco, the “classic” cigarette. Just like cigarettes, vaping (smoking an electronic cigarette) is prohibited in public places.
Nowadays, there are many ways to quit smoking: patches, gums, hypnosis, etc. The ban on smoking in public places has reduced passive smoking: non-smokers are less exposed to cigarette smoke, which is harmful to people’s health.
According to the WHO, 182 countries have signed a convention to
warn of the hazards of tobacco and
fight against smoking through various means (prevention campaigns, ban on tobacco advertising, etc.)
In 2020, 22.3% of the global population used tobacco – 36.7% of all men and 7.8% of the world’s women. In France, according to the
Santé Publique France website, in 2020, more than 3 in 10 adults (18-75 years old) smoked (31.8% of the population), and a quarter reported smoking every day (25.5%).
