Departments
Intermediate Japanese - Free Online Course
TABAKO
タバコ
cigarettes; tobacco
In the long history of its interaction with other countries, Japan has borrowed a number of practices from abroad—some beneficial, some deleterious. One of the more unhealthy habits that Japan imported from abroad is the practice of smoking. About 50% of all adult males in Japan smoke. (The percentage of Japanese women who smoke is around 15 percent.) Cigarettes can be purchased from vending machines and tobacco shops throughout Japan. Although the law forbids the sale of cigarettes to persons under the age of twenty, juvenile smoking is not uncommon.
The anti-smoking movement has tentatively begun to gain momentum in Japan. Until recently, even large companies allowed smoking in office buildings. But now most Japanese corporate employees who smoke have to huddle in cramped smoking areas during their lunch hours and breaks.