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joeri1505 t1_j23qjvo wrote

Because unlike Europe and the US, there hasn't been a strong anti-smoking movement in those countries. The same things that kept us smoking for so long (political reluctance, lobbying and financial interests) are still in full power in Asia.

Asians dont smoke more than Europe or the US did up untill deep into the 80's

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WeDriftEternal t1_j23tx1b wrote

Also it needs to be said that tobacco products in most of Asia and are generally quite inexpensive, even relative to their local economies.

One of the big things that lessens tobacco consumption is dramatically increasing the price, usually through taxes, which is what you see in a lot of the western world.

There’s also the “cool” factor. The coolness of smoking is far less in the west than it was 100 years ago, 50, even 20. But in most of Asia, it’s still pretty cool—and coolness in Asia is arguably more important than it ever was in the west.

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angsan_F t1_j23qr6j wrote

Thanks for the explanation, i was really curious about this but I couldn't find anything online

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Thelgow t1_j23xn2b wrote

Anecdotal but I had a friend who smoked back in Junior High School. We asked why? He said it was cultural and his father encouraged him to do so. There was a belief smoking was masculine and if you didn't you may be perceived as homosexual.

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