Women’s Union targets smokers

A conference o­n smoking in Viet Nam held by the union in the capital o­n Tuesday examined the impact of smoking o­n Vietnamese people.

The union’s Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy said Viet Nam had some of the highest rates of smoking in the world, with 56 per cent of mature-aged men and 2 per cent of women smoking.

Despite national programmes aimed at helping people quit smoking and smoking bans at some public locations, visitors to most restaurants, bars and public places in Viet Nam have to deal with passive smoking.

A study in two wards in Ha Noi revealed that women and children account for 55-56 per cent suffering from passive smoke inhalation, and have to put up with inhaling smoke for an average of 26 minutes per day.

Light up the countryside

Doctor Le Tan Phung from Khanh Son District Health Centre in Khanh Hoa Province said studies showed that 55.1 per cent of Raglai women at the age of 15 to 49 smoke (due to traditional reasons), while 47 per cent of them want to stop smoking.

The Viet Nam Women’s Union has worked with other departments to fight the health risks of passive smoking to women and their children with public awareness programmes. The union’s website features updates relating to smoking matters in Viet Nam and across the world as well as details o­n regulations o­n smoking at public places.