The Maldives has become the first country in the world to ban tobacco use for an entire generation, after a new law took effect Saturday.
Under the rule, anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 2007, is permanently banned from buying, using or being sold cigarettes or any other tobacco products in the country, the Maldives Health Ministry announced.
That means that anyone who's 18 or younger today will never be able to legally smoke in the nation, even as they age.
The law is meant to "protect public health and promote a tobacco-free generation," the ministry explained.
The ban applies to both residents and tourists visiting the Maldives, a nation of nearly 1,200 small coral islands within the Indian Ocean.
