South Korea has one of the highest rate of smokers in the world. In fact, according to statistics done by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in 2007, one in two Korean adult men smoke. Eight million smokers. That's big number, for such a small country.
Not only is the number of smokers increasing in Korea, but the way Korean people smoke is evolving as well. It's the year 2011, when almost everything is practically done electronically - say hello to e-cigarettes:
At first glance, you would assume the man in this video is simply chewing on his pen. But look closely - that's no pen, it's an electric cigarette! Wikipedia defines this as:
"An electronic cigarette, e-cigarette or vapor cigarette is a battery-powered device that provides inhaled doses of nicotine or non-nicotine vaporized solution."
More and more men in Korea are catching on to the trend of e-smoking, instead of lighting up regular cigarettes or pipes. With rising cigarette prices, will this rechargeable device make its way over to the United States soon? Well, although I hate smoking - if I had to choose - I would advise Americans to stick to traditional cigarettes. If smoking is supposed to make you look cool, e-smoking is certainly not the way to go.
