Macau Health Promotion Association (APSM) Vice President Leong Man Kin said Sunday he estimated that a third of local residents suffering from coronary disease are smokers.
Leong added that while he noticed more locals have decided to quit lighting up after the city’s anti-smoking law came into effect last year, it was easy for them to pick up the habit again.
Leong, a cardiologist, made the remarks in Iao Hon Park where his association held an event encouraging smokers to quit and non-smokers not to pick up the habit.
He told reporters on the sidelines of the event that the smoking ban in public places meant it has become more inconvenient for smokers to light up a cigarette, prompting them to quit the habit for good. “But of course, family support and help play a vital role in it. It is not that hard to quit smoking, but it’s quite easy to pick up the habit again. So it’s up to the support and encouragement of family members so that they [ex-smokers] don’t smoke again,” Leong was quoted by The Macau Post Daily as saying.
Commenting on the effectiveness of casinos having set up designated smoking and non-smoking areas, Leong said although many of his patients – many of them casino workers – welcomed the measure, many of them also complained that gaming operators had failed to set a clear boundary for the areas that allow or ban smoking.
The cardiologist concluded that due to the fact that they are constantly exposed to second-hand smoke in their workplace, many casino workers who smoke eventually decide to give it up once and for all.(macaunews)
