Tokyo Passes Its Secondhand Smoke Ordinance

I get more anti-cigarette every year, so this news makes me really happy.

Even when a restaurant looked delicious, I used to stay away if it allowed smoking and the smoke was bound to drift over to my table.

But now I won't have to worry about that anymore! (Cheering!)

With the arrival of IQOS I felt I was breathing in a lot less secondhand smoke, but lately even that earthy, potato-like smell had become too much for me.

After all, a meal at a restaurant is something you enjoy with all five senses.

You see the food, smell it, hear it, feel its texture, and then taste it.

I really hate having that aroma spoiled. Smoke where people are drinking wine is the worst.

I hear that about 84% of Tokyo's restaurants will be covered, and the thought of choosing a place without thinking about cigarettes at all makes me giddy.

I know many restaurants worry about losing sales, but a smoke-free indoors is the global norm.

More and more tourists are coming from overseas, and you'll lose those customers if you don't adapt.

I think the same goes for English menus: whoever gets there first wins.

Once everything is fully smoke-free, maybe people who would have lit up out of restlessness will simply order another drink instead. And there are ways to adapt, like charging a little extra for an outdoor area where smoking is allowed.

Smokers aren't going to be banned from smoking for the rest of their lives, so there's no need to be too gloomy about it!

Honestly, it seems strange to me that we treat something as casually as we do when it is as addictive as heroin and toxic enough to kill a child who swallows even one cigarette. I'd love for this to be the push people need to quit, lol.

If you quit smoking, it's easier on your wallet, you don't get irritable, your senses of taste and smell sharpen so you enjoy food more, and you get healthier.

See? There's nothing but upside.

Some people say the conversations that happen in smoking areas are important, but surely the benefits above outweigh whatever is said in them?

The ordinance will be phased in, with full enforcement by the Paralympics in April 2020, so I'm looking forward to it!

To everyone who is thinking of quitting before then, good luck!