Is smoking a problem for BBCs?

In the above Nicorette advert, Alex, a 31yr old trainee accountant tells us how, at the age of 16,he started smoking because of associations of it being daring, risky, adventurous and a form of rebellion against his parents. 

Having tried to give up smoking 3 times, at the time, Alex saw smoking as a release, sometimes smoking 10-15 a day.  Alongside Nicorette products, taking up sport has distracted him from smoking and given more focus, and having successfully quit completely, now feels more upbeat in general.

According to the 2011 NHS Statistics on smoking, 

"In 2004 the HSE included a boost sample to increase the sample size" of people in ethnic minority groups. The relationship between smoking status and ethnicity was explored in Chapter 4: Use of tobacco products of the associated report Health Survey for England 2004: The Health of Minority Ethnic Groups (HSE 2004)20. 

Example findings include: self-reported cigarette smoking prevalence was 40% among Bangladeshi, 30% Irish, 29% Pakistani, 25% of Black Caribbean, 21% Chinese, and 20% in Indian men, compared with 24% among men in the general population. 

 Self-reported smoking prevalence was higher among women in the general population (23%) than most minority ethnic groups, except Irish (26%) and Black Caribbean women (24%). The figures for the other groups were 10% Black African,

 8% Chinese, 5% Indian and Pakistani, and 2% in Bangladeshi women."

 2.4.2 Regional prevalence

The GLF 2009 report presented variations in smoking prevalence in England in 2009 by Government Office Region (GOR). The sample sizes were relatively small, making them subject to relatively high levels of sampling error, thus interpretation of regional data has been treated cautiously. Among men, the prevalence of current smokers was highest in the North West (24%) and London (26%) and lowest in the East Midlands and South West (19% each). For women, the highest prevalence was found in the Yorkshire and the Humber (22%), the North East (23%) and the North West (22%) and the lowest prevalence in the South West (17%).

According to this June 2012 BBC news report regarding the British public smoking ban in 2004 entitled: Smoking Ban's impact five years on whilst the ban has had a huge effect on stopping smokers in public...

" there is no evidence as yet that smokers have given up smoking in huge numbers because of the legislation.

While overall levels of smoking among adults in Great Britain remained constant at 21% between 2007 and 2009, the north east of England saw a different trend.
There, the smokefree ban proved to be a trigger for some adults to quit with the largest drop in smoking in England - from 29% in 2005 to 27% in 2007 and down to 21% by 2011.

"It's children who start smoking, not adults. We need to prevent people starting in the first place, full stop."

For BBCs who are more integrated into British society, whether clubbing, dating, or work,  is smoking  more to do with 'fitting in' or like Alex, do we take up the habit to be 'rebellious' ? And how easy is it for us to give up, if ever?

Chinese Plastic Surgery

Being born in Britain, our parents wanted the best start in life for us. Indeed, many British Born Chinese excel beyond their parents’ expectations. Whilst British Born Chinese females get on with life, few feel a need to alter their looks to fit in with the western ideal of beauty. I know no-one that feels compelled to try out the outlets in South Korea or Hong Kong that perform the “double eye-lid” surgery, none that want to buy skin whitening cream, nor spend precious earned cash on calf reduction.

Opening a Chinese gossip magazine or seeing the hordes of fresh faced East Asian female students entering the UK, it’s apparent that many East Asians take their appearance very seriously, their skin is often lightened, their eyes widened, their eyelashes extended and their breasts don’t sit naturally on a slight frame - in many ways they look like a celebration of the western identikit.

In Britain, whilst many of our role models are white, British Born Chinese women do not feel a need to go under the knife to look white. FOBs on the other hand have been marketed to look up to white culture, its not uncommon for East Asian female stars to get by on their looks alone. The way the media markets beauty to East Asian women seems to be about the superficial things in life, especially in Hong Kong and China, this transforms into a copied culture often seen on the internet.

Statistics from The Asian Plastic Surgery Guide showed that in 2009, an estimated 74 out of 10,000 people from South Korea had gone under the knife. Typical Korean plastic surgery procedures include the classic double eyelid surgery (blepharoplasty) and jaw re-alignment surgery. Other popular procedures include shaving cheek-bones to create a more smoother silhouette and calf reduction. Surprisingly, breast enlargement was not among the top procedures. Many believe a core is made up of Chinese nationals favouring top rated surgeons in Korea. 

The running theme is altering our natural Asian looks and replacing them with western ideals of beauty. Magazines are filled with western products designed mainly for the western market, but are pushed in magazines for Oriental women and modelled by Caucasian or Asian white mixed Eurasian models. This is the norm.

I believe that for many East Asian women, the competitive nature that has been well documented with the pushy Tiger mother/father upbringing has led to many seeking much more than academic achievement. Those lacking in that department, should at the very least have a presentable and enviable physique. Insecurity occurs when there is no real pride in our natural form. Our parents are ashamed, so we might as well be too. If parents spend more time criticising instead of encouraging us, how can we feel comfortable in our own skin?

As a British Born Chinese female, criticising and belittling was part of my upbringing. Being tall and pale was a measure of success. This can often lead to rebellion, or caving in to seek what our parents expect of us. Further from that, imagine being self-conscious and then being fed the idea that western beauty is the pinnacle of beauty. Yet, despite that, on closer scrutiny, there is a silver lining, our parents have inadvertently created a more robust British Born Chinese ready to rebel against all this superficial nonsense.

Here in Britain, you are living at close quarters, seeing things with warts and all, it soon hits you, aspiring to look like a white person is delusional. Perhaps in China, society is more competitive, looking like a white person may get you a better job, but here in Britain, you can’t fool the people here. Looks are not the answer, aspiring to look white will not earn you respect.

(By Guest Blogger- BBCNewAgenda is a British Born Chinese Female living in the UK)

Do Addicted Chinese Gamblers Deserve All The Punishment They Get?

Peter Chan, of the Christian Centre for Gambling Rehabilitation in King’s Cross

RECOVERING gambling addicts this week joined activists calling on the government to toughen up gaming laws that will restrict the soaring number of betting shops.

Members of the Chinese community, who say their lives have been ruined by gambling, added their voices to a campaign being orchestrated by figures including Peter Chan of the Christian Centre for Gambling Rehabilitation in King’s Cross.

The sufferers, who agreed to speak to the Tribune, told of how they had lost a fortune in betting shops and casinos.

Their intervention comes as the government examines whether to amend new legislation brought in by the previous Labour administration, which has allowed large numbers of bookies to open up in areas including Archway.

In a Channel 4 Dispatches documentary screened last week, Labour’s deputy leader Harriet Harman admitted that her party had been “wrong” to liberalise gaming legislation – a move which has allowed increasing numbers of betting shops to open on the high street.

Members of the Chinatown Gambling Concern Group, which believes Chinese people are particularly vulnerable to getting into debt through gambling, wants a consultation being run by the Department for Communities and Local Government to result in more obstacles being placed in the path of companies wishing to open new betting shops.

If Casinos and Betting shops are the only social option for Chinese who feel left out from  mainstream British Culture, and a lack of strong British Chinese leadership cannot provide a better social alternative for our community , then is the Christian religion the only solution for addicted Chinese gamblers?

Read more:  http://www.islingtontribune.com/news/2012/aug/addicts-taking-bookies-campaign-curb-rise-betting-shops

Other reading: http://bbczeitgeist.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/dear-nat-wei-british-chinese-dream-or.html

ONS Happiness Index

ONS Happiness Index 2012 measuring national 'well being' in the UK published its findings yesterday. For an overview, read The Guardian 'Key to well-being- Live on a remote island and don't work'

Here's the Methodology: For 'life satisfaction,' an evaluative approach asked individuals to make a cognitive assessment of how their life is going overall. The 'worthwhile' question uses the eudemonic approach and measures peoples sense of meaning and purpose in life, i.e connections with friends and family, sense of control and whether they feel part of something bigger than themselves.

The groups reporting the lowest average rating out of 10 for life satisfaction were Black African/Black Caribbean (6.7), Chinese and White group were the second highest at (7.4), surprisingly Indians reported the highest rating at (7.5). For the worthwhile index, lower than average ratings were reported by all groups except whites.

Differences are accountable to cultural bias and certain ethnic groups experiencing disadvantage in certain areas of life such as education, income, health and living conditions. 

As much as I would like to apply the same methodology by dismissing the results of the ONS Happiness Survey as 'unsatisfactory,' any differences in statistical numbers are so insignificant to render the entire survey - an 'un-worth-while' waste of £2million, if I was happy yesterday, I'm sure as anxious as hell today - shockingly, in the UK, Chinese are as content with their life as Whites and are no more subjectively affected by any significant disadvantages in life than Whites - maybe this explains why the ignorantly blissful 'happily satisfied' British Chinese community is so apathetic towards radical racial politics and identity in Britain. What do you think?

By BBCZeitgeist