Source: China Daily (cn)
Date: 2010-06-03
Author: Yang Wanli (China Daily)

The smoking rate among Beijingers is above the national average
according to research released on Wednesday by the Beijing health
bureau, and more than 80 percent of smokers don\'t view tobacco
addiction as a disease.

The survey, conducted from January through May, covered more than
2,000 residents aged from 18 to 89 and found that 34 percent of
respondents smoke. The percentage of male and female smokers was
60.2 and 4.8 percent respectively. The national average is 57.4
and 2.6 percent.

"Although the non-smoking campaign in the medical departments is
going well, with more than 40 percent of them reaching the target
we set, the high smoking rates among residents is not so
optimistic," said Zeng Xiaopeng, general director of the Beijing
Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

Zeng said the city\'s anti-smoking project would be further
promoted among communities, especially in residential clinics.