Electronic cigarettes in China

The sale and use of electronic cigarettes is illegal in some countries, but it is legal in the mainland of China. However, the sale and possession of nicotine-based electronic cigarettes is classified as a Type I Poison, which is governed under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance in Hong Kong.


When I was in China, I seldom saw people using electronic cigarettes. I personally think that these kind of products is not very popular in China until now. When I do the researches on internet, I saw some Chinese netizen are claiming they could not find a regular store to buy electronic cigarettes. Some Chinese smoker buy the electronic cigarette on the internet, and when they received the product, they got disappointed or even angry for the real quality. It is inconvenient and insecure for them to purchase electronic cigarettes.

Some researches show that instead of benefit people, electronic cigarettes might have some bad effects on people's health. Therefore, some smokers are still wondering whether they should use this product. I think the reason that electronic cigarette is not used generally among the smokers in China is people has very few confidence in this product. Some Chinese smoker do not realize the harm that cigarette could bring to them, the other ones do not believe electronic cigarette could help to quit smoking. I found many online forums and websites in other countries, and people will sharing their experiences with each other. However, I only found one in China which has less than 200 members. I think no matter whether the electronic cigarettes benefit smokers or not,  it is good for them to interact with each other and sharing the experiences. I think the electronic cigarettes must be more widely known and used  in China, and definitely the government will publish some advanced rules to regulate these products in many aspects simultaneously.