Smoking bans should include e-cigarettes, campaigners say

China's first nationwide smoking control law should also cover electronic cigarettes, which have been gaining popularity worldwide, to better protect the public, anti-smoking campaigners said.

ThecallcameaftertheStateCouncil'slegislativeaffairsofficepublicizedadraftlawonsmokingcontrollastweek,seekingpubliccomment.

Thelawwouldbanthesmokingoftobaccoproductsatallindoorpublicareasandprohibitallformsoftobaccoadvertising,promotionandsponsorship.

"Itdoesn'tcoverthee-cigarette,whichmightbeaprobleminthefuture,"saidXiaoLin,aseniorpublichealthspecialistoftheChineseCenterforDiseaseControlandPrevention,ataseminarheldbytheChineseAssociationonTobaccoControl.

Currently,e-cigarettesarenotaspopularinChinaasintheWest,wherecontrolsonsmokingtraditionalcigarettesinpublichavebeenstrictlyimplemented,accordingtoGanQuan,theChinadirectoroftheInternationalUnionAgainstTuberculosisandLung

Disease.

However,hesaid,"We'veseenanincreasingpopularityofe-cigaretteshere,especiallyamongyoungpeople."

InAugust,theWorldHealthOrganizationissuedareportthatrecognizedpublichealththreatsposedbye-cigarettesandurgednationalgovernmentstostrengthenregulationofthedevices.

Itcalledforbansontheindooruseofe-cigarettes,sayingtheexhaledvaporfromthemcouldincreaseairlevelsofsometoxins,andalsoonthedevices'advertisingandpromotionandsaletominors.Themarketforthecigarettesubstitutesisvaluedat$3billionworldwide.

GansaidthatChinahasnorulesregulatinge-cigarettes,whichusebattery-poweredcartridgestoproduceflavoredvapors,withorwithoutnicotine,andthatpeoplecaneasilybuythemonline.

Inventedin2003asasubstitutefornormalcigarettes,thee-cigarettesoongainedpopularityintheUnitedStatesandEurope,wheretheyaresubjecttofewerregulations.

Morethan70percentofthedevicessoldworldwideareproducedinChina.

"TheChinesegovernmentshouldnotethistrendandtakepreemptivemeasurestopreventtheproductfrombecomingbiginChina,"Gansaid.

XuGuihua,executivedeputydirectoroftheChineseAssociationonTobaccoControl,agreedandurgedresearchontheproductstoguidefutureregulation.

Chinahasmorethan300millionsmokers,andanother740millionpeopleareexposedtosecondhandsmokeeachyear,officialstatisticsshow.

Nationwide,adozencitieshaveintroducedlegislationtocontrolsmokinginpublicplacesatlocallevels,butimplementationoverallispoor,Xusaid.