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Shanghai smokefree law an important step in improving the health of more than 24 million people

(November 15, 2016, Beijing, China, and New York, USA) –Vital Strategies today congratulated the government of Shanghai – China’s and the world’s most populous city – on its decision to pass a new smokefree law. When it comes into effect in March 2017, the law will require 100 percent smoke-free restaurants, bars, workplaces and public transportation. Shanghai now joins Beijing as a major Chinese and global smokefree city.

Vital Strategies also lauded the Shanghai Municipal Center for Disease Control & Prevention and the Shanghai Health Promotion Committee on launching a new mass media campaign to coincide with the passage of the law. Vital Strategies was pleased to assist with implementing this campaign to increase public understanding about the need for the law and to strengthen support.

José Luis Castro, President and CEO, Vital Strategies, said: “We applaud Shanghai’s Government for passing legislation to implement comprehensive smokefree laws that will protect Shanghai, which is home to 24 million people including millions of children. The beneficial impact of this law will be significant for current and future generations.

“Studies have shown that support for smokefree policies in China is higher than it was in Ireland, the first country to go smokefree, 13 years ago. Beijing’s smokefree laws are widely regarded as having been successful. The combination of public support and Beijing’s success will help to ensure the success of Shanghai’s new law, but strong enforcement to encourage compliance are also vital.”

Dr. Judith Mackay, Senior Advisor for Tobacco Control, Vital Strategies said: “The new smoke-free legislation in Shanghai, China, follows on the heels of immensely successful smoke-free legislation in Shenzhen and Beijing and is yet another step forward in China’s determination to protect the health of its citizens. Now that most major cities have introduced such legislation, and given the enormity of the tobacco epidemic in China, the next logical step is to enact the national smoke-free legislation, currently under consideration.”

Smokefree laws benefit non-smokers and smokers alike. Non-smokers are exposed to significantly less second-hand smoke, while smokers tend to smoke less, have greater cessation success, and experience increased confidence in their ability to quit. 

The new campaign features three powerful ads: “Invisible Killer- Office,” which highlights that exposure to SHS increases the risk of heart disease by 25 percent, “Smoke Free Restaurant,” which encourages smokers and non-smokers to consider the dangers of second-hand smoke exposure among diners in restaurants, especially children, and “Child,” which graphically illustrates the harm smoking causes to smokers and the impact it has on their loved ones, particularly children. The campaign is now live and will run through the end of December 2016, with an intensive broadcast schedule across local TV channels, and at two airports and three railway stations.

The campaign will also coincide with and support the Global Health Promotion Conference, being held in Shanghai from November 21st through 24th, 2016. 

The “Invisible Killer- Office,” “Smoke Free Restaurant,” and “Child” ads and stills and transcripts from the ads are available upon request.

Notes to Editors

The burden of tobacco use in China

The Tobacco Atlas notes that more than 275,900,000 adults and more than 8,937,000 children continue to use tobacco each day in China. This includes 45.3 percent of men, 2.1 percent of women, 18 percent of boys and 0.5 percent of girls. Every year, more than 1,384,200 of China’s people are killed by tobacco-caused disease. Tobacco is responsible for 19.5 percent of adult male deaths and 11.9 percent of adult female deaths – more than the average in other middle-income countries.  This suggests that women in China suffer a disproportionate burden of death and disease from exposure to SHS. 
 
A report from World Health Organization (WHO), the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project (ITC Project) and the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), found that 740 million non-smokers in China – including 182 million children – are exposed to SHS at least once a day, causing approximately 100,000 deaths every year. According to The Tobacco Atlas, SHS increases the risks of contracting lung cancer by 30 percent (small cell lung cancer by 300 percent) and coronary heart disease by 25 percent. Exposure to SHS killed more than 600,000 non-smokers globally in 2010 from causes of death including ischemic heart disease, lower respiratory infections, asthma, and lung cancers.

A paper in The Lancet revealed that smoking initiation among men in China is happening at a younger age and that smokers continue to smoke for longer compared with previous generations, increasing their risk of disease and premature death.  Unless significant advances are made in reducing tobacco use, the study predicts that one in three of all young men in China will eventually die from tobacco use, and smoking-related premature death – from conditions including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung cancer, stroke and heart disease – will claim two million lives every year by 2030.

About Vital Strategies

Vital Strategies envisions a world where every person is protected by a strong public health system.  Our team combines evidence-based strategies with innovation to help develop sound public health policies, manage programs efficiently, strengthen data systems, conduct research, and design strategic communication campaigns for policy and behavior change.  Vital Strategies is an affiliate of The International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union).

To find out more, please visit vitalstrategies.org or Twitter @VitalStrat

For further information or to arrange an interview with a Vital Strategies public health and maternal health expert, please contact Tracey Johnston, Vital Strategies, at +44.7889.081.170 or tjohnston@vitalstrategies.org