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Quick links to detailed datasheets for Japan at gsthr.org

Smoking in Japan

Current adult tobacco smoking prevalence is 19.4%. (with 10.5% of women and 28.7% of men).

Read articles from Japan

November 14, 2024 by 24shareupdates.com

Millions of Japanese Lives Could Be Saved

Leading public health experts said Japan could save millions of lives if it embraces innovative and proven tobacco harm reduction measures. In Tokyo, the event featured a series of discussions with harm reduction and public health experts, including Dr. Fredrik Nystrom, Professor Marewa Glover, Professor David Sweanor, Professor Kazumasa Oguro, Dr. Kenji Shibuya and Dr. Hiroya Kumamaru.

May 29, 2024 by filtermag.org

Japan’s Leading Position in the Tobacco Harm Reduction World

Japan has achieved a 52% decrease in cigarette sales, largely due to the popularity of heated tobacco products (HTP). The success story is outlined in a Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction (GSTHR) briefing. Factors contributing to this decline, including regulatory measures and health concerns, are discussed. Despite initial dual use, many are transitioning to HTP for reduced harm. The unique Japanese trend emphasizes switching from cigarettes to safer alternatives. Notable growth in HTP sales has outpaced cigarettes, supported by a welcoming retail environment and minimal government intervention. Japan's success highlights consumer-driven public health improvements and the cultural acceptance of harm reduction methods.

May 12, 2021 by moneycontrol.com

Philip Morris to phase out cigarettes in Japan within decade

The head of tobacco giant Philip Morris said the company will phase out conventional cigarettes in Japan within 10 years, in an interview with the Nikkei business daily published Friday.

The Marlboro maker announced in 2016 a long-term goal to stop selling cigarettes and replace them with alternatives that it says are less harmful -- but this is the first time it has given a clear deadline.

 

"We want Japan to be the first market" for the phase-out, newly appointed CEO Jacek Olczak told the Nikkei in an interview published in Japanese.

April 09, 2021 by manilatimes.net

Japan model in smoking rate reduction – expert

The introduction of noncombustible alternatives in Japan in 2014 helped reduce smoking rate in the world’s largest market of heated tobacco products (HTPs) by nearly a third in a span of three to four years, according to a public health expert.

Kumamaru Hiroya, vice director of the AOI Universal Hospital in Kawasaki, said nicotine replacement therapy (NTP), such as nicotine patches, has proved ineffective in reducing the smoking rate in Japan.

January 19, 2021 by japantimes.co.jp

Seizures of liquid marijuana surging in Japan

The amount of liquid marijuana seized in Japan has been surging, putting police and customs authorities on high alert.

The estimated amount of marijuana in liquid form confiscated by Tokyo Customs in 2020 jumped nearly 70 times from the previous year’s level. A customs official described the situation as “an explosive increase.”

The liquid extracted from marijuana plants has a higher content of hallucinogenic tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, than dried cannabis and can be used in a similar way to electronic cigarettes.

 

December 03, 2020 by prnewswire.com

Sales of Conventional Cigarettes in Japan Reduce by 34% Since Launch of Heated Tobacco Products

Frost & Sullivan's latest thought leadership white paper, Tobacco Harm Reduction and Novel Nicotine and Tobacco Products: Evidence from the Japanese Market, written in collaboration with Philip Morris International, covers the impact of the commercial launch of NNTPs on tobacco use in Japan and discusses the regulatory approach that the Japanese government is taking with regard to these products. It focuses on the Japanese market because HTPs have been commercially available in the country since 2013, and Japan is the largest market for HTPs, despite the absence of a formal THR policy to encourage this.

August 10, 2020 by japantimes.co.jp

Japan's male smoking rate drops below 30% for first time

Japan’s male smoking rate fell below 30 percent for the first time last year, slipping to 28.8 percent, down 2.3 points from the previous study in 2016, a health ministry survey found.

The national livelihood survey, conducted every three years by the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry, also found that the female smoking rate fell 0.7 point to 8.8 percent.

March 30, 2020 by stripes.com

Japan’s ban on smoking inside restaurants and bars takes effect this week

People will no longer be allowed to smoke in most restaurants and bars in Japan starting Wednesday, according to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

The ban, which includes heated tobacco like cigarettes and cigars but not e-cigarettes, protects people “who want to avoid getting exposed to secondhand tobacco smoke,” according to a health ministry document explaining the law.

It’s part of a revised Health Promotion Law passed in 2018. [...]

January 18, 2019 by reuters.com

Japan Tobacco ratchets up smokeless war with new products

Japan Tobacco Inc (2914.T) on Thursday unveiled two “heat-not-burn” products, as it races against market leader Philip Morris International Inc (PM.N) for a larger share of the vaping space with conventional cigarettes steadily falling out of favor. Despite commanding 60 percent of the local cigarette market, Japan Tobacco has been caught on the wrong side of the rising popularity of heat-not-burn (HNB) alternatives and has lagged in the category in its own backyard versus the Marlboro maker.

August 06, 2018 by reuters.com

Japan Tobacco buying Bangladesh Akij's tobacco business for $1.5 billion

Japan Tobacco Inc is buying the tobacco business of Bangladesh’s Akij Group for around $1.5 billion, its second major purchase in five months as the world’s third-biggest cigarette maker seeks new growth markets to offset shrinking sales at home. “With this investment, we continue to accelerate our expansion in emerging markets that matter, a key component of Japan Tobacco Group’s growth strategy,” Japan Tobacco said in a statement on Monday.