Tobacco use is linked with a number of health problems including COPD and lung cancer, and these negative health correlations are primary reasons why many countries are implementing measures to curtail tobacco use, especially in younger generations. In fact, in 2022, New Zealand banned tobacco to all people born after 2009 and was not the first country to adopt this approach. Denmark has already enacted this ban, and Malaysia is soon to follow suit.
While there are pros and cons to this approach, most people believe this experiment is worthwhile and could have success. According to this article published in the Lancet, “It is a massive experiment. We don’t yet know how it will pan out. Much will depend on young people and how they make sense of the law,” said Gerard Porter, Senior Lecturer in Medical Law and Ethics at the University of Edinburgh. Even from a libertarian perspective, he said, the health costs of smoking could justify such strong-arm moves. It was precisely its discriminatory nature, gradually introducing change while allowing current smokers to continue smoking, he said, that made this different from previous attempts to outlaw tobacco.”1
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Disclaimers
- The material in these reviews is from various public open access sources, meant for educational and informational purposes only
- Any personal opinions expressed are those of only the author(s) and are not intended to represent the position of any organization(s)
- No official support by any organization(s) has been provided or should be inferred
References
- McCall, C. (2022). A smoke-free generation: New Zealand’s tobacco ban. The Lancet, 399(10339), 1930–1931. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(22)00925-4
