A day before World No Tobacco Day, federal authorities launched a mini-assault on Guadalajara establishments that have yet to fall in line with laws governing smoking in public places.
Six establishments were affected by Federal Commission for the Protection of Sanitary Risks (Cofepris) raids on Sunday, May 30.
The popular “Chess” nightclub on Lopez Mateos was temporarily closed as well as parts of the Casino Gran Nevada and the bar area of the “La Matera” restaurant. Two Oxxo’s and one Seven-Eleven in the city center were also fined.
Although some business owners complained about the economic impact of such closures, the laws are still poorly enforced, and many bars and restaurants do not have separate smoking areas.
Smoking in Jalisco is seen as a major health risk by the State Council against Addictions. Speaking on World No Tobacco Day, council officials said 3,200 deaths a year are caused by tobacco-related causes.
Meanwhile, figures from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey show Mexico to have 10.9 million smokers, or 15.9 percent of the population – 8.1 million of which are men and 2.8 million women.
The same study indicated that 50 percent of the 10.9 million would die from illnesses related to tobacco consumption.
Mario Henry Rodriguez, director of the National Institute of Public Health, said the results were alarming not just for the high numbers of smokers but “for the high numbers of non-smokers who are exposed to other peoples tobacco smoke.”
According to the study, 80 percent of respondents said that they had been exposed to secondary smoke in the last month.
On a worldwide scale, over one billion people smoke, 20 percent of whom are female.
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