Towards a “smoke-free generation”

According to reports from the World Health Organization (WHO), tobacco use is the cause of 28 disease groups, including cancer, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, and reproductive health problems. Tobacco also causes more than 8 million deaths annually worldwide, with approximately 1.6 million cases stemming from passive smoking.

A "Smoke-Free School" awareness campaign for middle and high school students.

In 2025, the WHO noted that countries around the world had made significant progress in preventing and controlling the harmful effects of tobacco, especially in Southeast Asia.

In Vietnam, a report summarizing 13 years of implementing the Law on Prevention and Control of Tobacco Harm noted a significant reduction in both the rate of tobacco use among men and adolescents. However, many countries, including Vietnam, are now facing the urgent need to strengthen control over new-generation tobacco products, as e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, despite being banned, are still being secretly circulated illegally, potentially undermining the achievements in tobacco harm prevention and control over the past decade.

More than a year has passed since Resolution No. 173/2024/QH15 of the National Assembly officially came into effect, placing new-generation cigarettes on the list of prohibited products for production, trade, import, storage, transportation, and use. However, due to the enormous profits involved, individuals are disregarding the law and finding ways to circumvent it. Faced with strict legal regulations, these "ringleaders" are dispersing their warehouses to many locations in an attempt to avoid the "red line" regarding the value of prohibited goods, which must be at least 100 million VND, as stipulated in Article 190 of the Penal Code.

Along with that, the groups and organizations involved in trading these dangerous products have also retreated into clandestine operations with more sophisticated evasive tactics. Recently, they have been smuggling components in and assembling them into new-generation e-cigarette products domestically instead of importing complete units as before. In some places and at some times, e-cigarettes are still openly "ordered online" and used in secluded corners of cafes, bars, and even on the streets. More dangerously, these new-generation e-cigarette products are also being disguised as drugs, being touted by users as "safe stimulants."

We have a legal framework with appropriate sanctions, but we haven't yet addressed the bottleneck regarding the "extended arms" of law enforcement. Local police and health inspectors in wards and communes have a huge workload daily and cannot conduct covert operations to record and process violations by individual offenders. Furthermore, the process of separating and analyzing the levels of "prohibited substances" in essential oils used in new generation tobacco products requires considerable time and expense, hindering the on-site handling of violations.

Results from several surveys conducted by the WHO show that, over the past year, e-cigarette use among students in Vietnam has decreased by more than half. For students aged 13-17, use has also decreased significantly from 8% to 1%. In addition, emergency hospital visits due to e-cigarette use have also decreased.

However, according to Dr. Angela Pratt, WHO Representative in Vietnam, the ban on e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products should be more comprehensively reflected in relevant laws, specifically by banning product components, including e-cigarette liquids, nicotine pouches, or "dried herbs" as some users call them.

Conventional tobacco control measures – the source of nicotine intake through smoking – need to be drastically strengthened. All types of tobacco products should be banned from display, visual health warnings on packaging should be increased, regulations on no-smoking areas should be strictly enforced, and consideration should be given to increasing the authority of law enforcement agencies to handle violations in a more appropriate and practical manner.

Vietnam is joining many countries in the fight against tobacco with new, consistent, and firm steps, aiming for a better future.

Vietnam is joining many countries in the fight against tobacco with new, consistent, and firm steps, aiming for a better future. Preliminary estimates suggest that by 2031, the tobacco tax reforms recently approved by the National Assembly will help 2.1 million people quit or avoid smoking, reduce access to cheap cigarettes, and significantly prevent approximately 700,000 tobacco-related deaths. If a "tobacco-free generation" policy is considered, Vietnamese youth and children will have the best chance to develop healthier lives, live longer, and become the future leaders of a country free from the effects of nicotine.

Linh Phan

Source: https://nhandan.vn/huong-den-the-he-khong-thuoc-la-post966628.html