The nation has more than 4 million cigarette smokers, with the smoking rate highest in Ilan County, according to the Department of Health.
In the first large-scale survey on smoking in Taiwan, the department commissioned Taipei Medical University to conduct the poll on adult smoking behavior by interviewing 16,688 adults via telephone in 25 cities and counties.
The survey found that 42.8 percent of men and 4.5 percent of women smoke. Though the figures are lower than the 2002 rate of 48.2 percent of men and 5.3 percent of women, the DOH said the number of people who smoke still translates to roughly 4.2 million.
In terms of prevalence, the highest smoking rate is in Ilan County at 29.36 percent, followed by Taichung County at 28.19 percent, Taoyuan County at 27.19 percent, Miaoli County at 26.93 percent and Nantou County at 26.66 percent.
Chen Ping-ling (
In contrast with the stereotype, the survey also found that the number of smokers in urban areas was significantly lower than in rural areas, which Chen attributed to the enactment of the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (
The survey also found that even in cities and counties which are considered close-knit -- such as Taichung City and County, Tainan City and County, and Kaohsiung City and County -- the smoking rates in county areas are invariably higher than in the city.
Chen attributed the phenomenon to the varying population structures in cities and counties, adding that medical records at home and overseas also indicated that the bulk of smokers are those who have a lower education level and blue-collar workers.
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
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Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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