TOBACCO GROWING AND CULTURAL IMPACTS ON SMOKING AMONG ETHNIC MINORITY WOMEN IN YUNNAN, CHINA

Abstract

Tobacco growing is very popular in Yunnan, China, and be traced back hundreds of years. Smoking has been a serious threat to women’s health. This paper, based on data from anthropological fieldwork conducted on women smokers from Yi, Wa, Hani, Lahu, Miao, Zhuang, Dai, and Tibetan peoples living in the southeastern, northwestern and southern parts of Yunnan, points out that smoking is popular among ethnic minority women in mountainous areas, especially among old women. Factors affecting their smoking include socio-cultural, environmental, religious, gender, educational, and health-care causes, which should be taken into account when smoking control policies are implemented.