Uruguay is unlikely world leader in anti-smoking efforts
by Worldview Mar. 25, 2011
talk with Dr. Eduardo Bianco.., WorldView|WBEZ91.5
Uruguay - some related new briefs:
Uruguay - Supreme Court dismissed a constitutional challenge by PMI..;
Uruguay - PMI believes reports on cases misleading and omit important facts..;
WHO FCTC COP-4 - next steps on illicit trade..;
WHO FCTC - COP-4 - delivers progress on global tobacco control..;
WHO FCTC COP-4 - good news, WILL not ban ingredients used in producing blended tobacco..;
Uruguay - weaken anti-smoking laws after pressure from the tobacco giant Philip Morris International..:
Read more...
Uruguay - talk with Dr. Eduardo Bianco director of the Tobacco Epidemic Research Center ..
Ocean City , Maryland and Bethany Beach, Delaware..
BETHANY BEACH — A smoking ban on the Bethany Beach boardwalk will now be extended year-round. The Town Council in a 4-3 vote extended the ban beyond just the summer season to the entire year. The prohibition applies to the boardwalk and access ramps and follows an existing year-round ban on smoking at the bandstand and parks and playgrounds. Smokers will still be able to light up at designated areas. A first-time offense carries a warning, but repeat violators could face fines.
Even in mid-January when the winds are whipping over the dunes and a person could fire a harpoon down the Bethany boardwalk without fear of hitting a fellow visitor, it will still be illegal to light up a cigarette. (Bethany Beach extends boardwalk smoking ban, Written by The News Journal, delmarvanow.com, 3/19/2011).
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Fall River, MA Tobacco must come off pharmacy shelves in 30 days..
March 25, 2011 - Fall River is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, in the United States. It is located about 46 miles (74 km) south of Boston and 16 miles (26 km) southeast of Providence, Rhode Island. Fall River, MA.
The ban on selling tobacco products in stores with pharmacies will become a Fall River city ordinance in 30 days after the City Council’s second 5-4 vote to approve the ban Tuesday night, March 22nd. Once the ordinance becomes law, 17 retail outlets like CVS, Rite Aid and Stop & Shop must remove cigarettes and related products from their shelves or face daily fines.
“I’m very happy they passed it tonight. I think it’s one more step in making Fall River a healthier place to live and raise our kids,” said Marilyn Edge, SouthCoast tobacco cessation and prevention coordinator.
Ms. Edge: “I feel we have to focus on doing everything we can to stop people from smoking, but what’s in front of you is not going to do that,” Councilor Pat Casey said.
Mayor Will Flanagan now has 10 days to sign it, and there’s an automatic 20-day appeal period before the ordinance goes into effect. The new law won't impact five independent pharmacies in the city. Those establishments voluntarily stopped selling cigarettes at least a decade ago, according to prior testimony.
The chain stores that will be affected include: seven Rite Aids, four CVS stores, two Walgreens, two Stop & Shops, one Wal-Mart and one of the two Shaw's supermarkets in the city.
Only the Shaw's on William Canning Boulevard is included in the ban, because it has a pharmacy. The North Main Street location does not have a pharmacy and can continue to sell tobacco, according to information gathered from store officials and Assistant Corporation Counsel Elizabeth Pereira.
Edge, joined by leaders of the BOLD Coalition and their supporters, including city youth, referenced four other cities and four towns that passed similar tobacco sale bans, including Boston in 2008. More are under consideration, she said.
Joined for an interview after the vote by Markus Watson, B.M.C. Durfee High School senior and leader of BOLD’s Teens Against Drug Abuse, Edge said she wanted to emphasize that the stores covered by the ban did not participate in the public debate.
All of the chain stores with individual pharmacies and their corporate offices were invited to come to meetings held on three occasions this month. “And not one has shown up or voiced opposition,” she said. Edge said she thought the reason was “because it’s not an important issue to them.”
Attorney Donald Wilson, head of the Massachusetts Municipal Association, said changes in the availability of cigarettes has happened “over the last couple of decades.”
Hospitals, for instance, don’t allow the sale of cigarettes in their gift shops or vending machines, and some, including in the SouthCoast, ban cigarette smoking on hospital campuses, he said.
A drug store, he said, prescribes dosages of medicine to make one get better. “Cigarettes can guarantee that it leads to death,” he said.
Reference: Tobacco must come off pharmacy shelves in 30 days, City Council decides by Michael Holtzman, Herald News Staff Reporter. 3/23/2011.
Tobacco Free Mass..
Massachusetts - some related news briefs:
Massachusetts has launched its second campaign in three years to try to curb smoking among veterans..:
Massachusetts - Anna Jaques Hospital jobs - if nicotine test is positive do not apply;
Massachusetts - Lorillard has to pay punitive damages of $81 million..;
Massachusetts - Lorillard loses lawsuit - did they pass out cigarettes to kids??;
Massachusetts South Coast - smoking among pregnant women far surpasses state average..;
Massachusetts - if states cover tobacco cessation treatment cost will smokers quit??;
Massachusetts Hospital Association - as of January 1, 2011 will no longer hire users of tobacco products..;
Cambridge, MA city counsel studying proposal to ban smoking in public parks..;
Boston Area - tobacco signs more plentiful in city's poorer areas..
Lorillard claims not liable in a 2004 lawsuit by a former black Newport smoker..;
Boston, Massachusetts - next, ban smoking in all public housing..;
Boston, MA. - gets federal stimulus funding for obesity and tobacco prevention projects..;
Massachusetts - senate votes to license 3-totally no-smoking casinos..;
Massachusetts - City of Everett to ban tobacco sales in pharmacies..;
Massachusetts - may force retailers to display graphic warning signs of perils of tobacco..;
Massachusetts - jury rejects condo owner's lawsuit that realtor did not inform that neighbor smoked..;
Massachusetts - YOUTH - cigars and smokeless tobacco use surpasses cigarettes..;
Successful Massachusetts tobacco cessation program gets national attention..;
Massachusettes - lower income smokers giving up their nicotine addiction..;
Massachusettes - smoker loses job and then loses in federal court..;
Massachusetts - smokeless tobacco purchasers settle class action suit..;
Boston's ban on blunt wraps stands..;
Boston - NO Tobacco Products Sold - Pharmacies/College Campuses..;
Massachusetts cigarette tax jumps $1 per pack..;
Massachusetts (MA) Likely to Increase Tobacco tax..;
Massachusettes - Smoking ban drop in fatal heart attacks..;
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Glaxo sponsored study - New Survey Finds Menthol Smokers Feel "Twice-Addicted.."
March 25, 2011 - A survey conducted this month, sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, uncovers the perceptions and habits of menthol cigarette smokers, particularly among African Americans, who disproportionately smoke menthols over any other group.(1) The survey shows that menthol smokers feel "twice-addicted" – both to the menthol and to the tobacco – and most are attracted by the taste and feel of menthol cigarettes.(1) Almost three-quarters (74 percent) of menthol smokers believe that menthol makes it easier for them to inhale, when almost 40 percent say that menthol flavoring is the only reason they smoke.(1)
Additionally, if the FDA were to ban menthol cigarettes, four out of five menthol smokers (82 percent) say they are likely to try quitting.(1)
"Almost all menthol smokers in the survey reported they want to quit, but were less likely to have tried quitting than regular smokers. They are also less likely to have tried using treatment," said Cedric Bright*, M.D., president-elect of the National Medical Association and associate professor of medicine in the Departments of Medicine and Community and Family Medicine at Duke University Medical Center. "With the high interest in quitting among these smokers, more needs to be done to educate smokers about accessible resources, such as counseling and nicotine replacement therapy, which are proven methods for improving success rates. ("Dr. Bright is a paid spokesperson for GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare but his opinions regarding smoking cessation are his own.)
An online survey was conducted among 616 adult smokers in the U.S., including 308 menthol cigarette smokers and 308 regular (non-menthol) cigarette smokers. The sample included 252 African American smokers (a deliberate oversample), including 152 menthol smokers, and 100 regular smokers. For analysis, sample data were statistically weighted by race, gender, income, and menthol versus non-menthol smoking to accurately reflect the current population of adult smokers on each of these dimensions. Weighting was based on data from the 2009 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), conducted by United States Department of Health and Human Services. Data were collected between March 2 and March 10, 2011. Survey design, data collection, and analysis were done by Versta Research and sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare.(1)
Reference: New Survey Finds Menthol Smokers Feel "Twice-Addicted" Ban on Menthols Seen as an Opportunity to Quit, Particularly among African Americans, PR Newswire, 3/24/2011.
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Maryland - Cigar Tax Bill Likely Dead..
March 25, 2011 - A bill that would have raised the cigar tax in Maryland to 95 percent of the wholesale price appears to be dead after a Senate committee voted to mark the bill as unfavorable. On Monday, March 21st the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee voted 12-1 to label the bill as unfavorable, meaning it will be seen on the chamber calendar under the heading "Unfavorable Reports" and will most likely be rejected.
(Maryland Cigar Tax Bill Likely Dead, Andrew Nagy, 3/24.2011)
A proposed 500 percent excise tax increase on ‘other tobacco products’ could decimate Maryland’s cigar and pipe tobacco businesses, according to the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association.
Maryland House Bill 853 and Senate Bill 654 both propose to increase the excise tax rate on tobacco products other than cigarettes from 15 percent to 90 percent with a $3 cap on cigars.
"When will legislators realize that tax increases like this never produce the revenues predicted and always result in negative consequences like lost jobs and businesses?" asked Chris McCalla, legislative director of the IPCPR. "In a small state like Maryland, tobacco customers can easily cross to another state or make their purchases online and pay little to no state or local taxes."
According to the Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan educational organization founded in 1937, Maryland was the only state to raise every major tax in 2008 in order to fund new spending programs including doubling of its cigarette tax from $1 to $2 per pack. The Foundation said the tax increase served to introduce record levels of bootlegged product into the state, hurt local businesses by sending thousands of the state’s smokers to surrounding states to purchase their tobacco products, and generated only half the revenue increase predicted by tax supporters.
In addition, the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 is funded solely by excise taxes on tobacco products. CHIP raised federal taxes on cigarettes to more than $10 per carton and on roll-your-own tobacco from about $1.10 per pound to $24.78 per pound – a 2,253 percent increase.
"Now the Maryland legislature is considering raising excise taxes yet again on other tobacco products from the current 15 percent of the wholesale price to 90 percent," McCalla said.
McCalla believes the only result that would be sure to take place from such an action is the further destruction of Maryland small businesses, which includes the loss of jobs and state, federal and local tax revenues.
"Premium tobacco products like pipes and cigars are highly sensitive to price increases because they are more a choice than a habit. They are adult products that make ordinary moments special and special moments extraordinary, like a fine wine," he said.
McCalla urged Maryland smokers and nonsmokers alike to tell their state senators and delegates to vote no on tax increases such as these.
Reference: Proposed Maryland Tobacco Tax Increase is Anti-Business , pipesmagazine.com, 3/2/2011.
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Caifornia Bill SB 575 - eliminates smoking exemptions..
March 25, 2011 - Senate Bill 575 was introduced by Senator Mark DeSaulnier, D-Concord, with the intention of expanding the current workplace prohibition on smoking to include owner-operated business and eliminate the specified exemptions found in the current Smoke-Free Workplace law. The bill also seeks to clarify "confusion and hardship that can result from enactment or enforcement of disparate local workplace smoking restrictions."
Existing law prohibits smoking of tobacco products inside an enclosed space, as defined, at a place of employment. The violation of the prohibition against smoking in enclosed spaces of places of employment is an infraction punishable by a specified fine. This bill would expand the prohibition on smoking in a place of employment to include an owner-operated business, as defined.
This bill would also eliminate most of the specified exemptions that permit smoking in certain work environments, such as hotel lobbies, bars and taverns, tobacco shops, banquet rooms, warehouse facilities, and employee break rooms.
Reference: SB 575 (DeSaulnier) Smoking in the workplace, california legislation, roundthecapitol.com, 3/2011..
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US. FDA - at present no oversight on dissolvable tobacco products..
Star Scientific Inc., a maker of dissolvable tobacco lozenges, announced Wednesday that it received an FDA notice saying that two of its products are not subject to regulations in the federal Food Drug & Cosmetic Act. U.S. Shortcomming fda tobacco regulations only applies to cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, smokeless tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco..
How dissolvable tobacco products are made could determine whether or not they fall under the jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Administration.
Star Scientific Inc., a maker of dissolvable tobacco lozenges, announced Wednesday that it received an FDA notice saying that two of its products are not subject to regulations in the federal Food Drug & Cosmetic Act.
The determination could open the door for other dissolvable tobacco products, such as R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.’s Camel orbs, sticks and filmlike strips for the tongue, to also not be subject to FDA regulation.
The industry, led by Reynolds, has put more focus on smokeless tobacco as a revenue source in recent years as the number of U.S. adults who smoke has dropped to about 20 percent.
According to the federal act, smokeless tobacco is defined as “any tobacco product that consists of cut, ground, powdered or leaf tobacco, and that is intended to be placed in the oral or nasal cavity.”
he FDA verified Deyton’s statement that “not all tobacco products are currently subject” to the act. At this time, only cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, smokeless tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco are subject.
Jeffery Ventura, a spokesman for the FDA, said that the agency “recognizes there are uncertainties regarding the regulatory status of a variety of nicotine-containing products derived from tobacco; more specifically, whether these products are regulated as drugs or tobacco products.
“The FDA is considering its legal and regulatory options regarding these products.”
Refwerence: Two tobacco products free of FDA oversightt, smokersinfo.net, 3/24/2011.
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U.S. Shortcomming fda tobacco regulations only applies to cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, smokeless tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco ..
The notices from Lawrence Deyton, MD, MSPH, Director of the FDA Center for Tobacco Products (CTP), state, in part, "Not all tobacco products are currently subject to Chapter IX of the FDCA [Federal Food Drug & Cosmetic Act]. At this time, only cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, smokeless tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco are subject to Chapter IX FDCA Section 901(b). Based upon the information in your submission, [ARIVA-BDL(TM) and Stonewall-BDL(TM) are] not currently subject to Chapter IX requirements."
"It is clear from the notices we received that the Center for Tobacco Products does not believe these products are subject to regulation under FDC Act Chapter IX at this time," Star said.
References: Star Scientific Receives Notices from FDA: Ariva-BDL(TM) and Stonewall-BDL(TM) Not Subject to Regulation Under FDC Act Chapter IX, PRNewswire via COMTEX/, SOURCE Star Scientific, Inc., 3/213/2003..-
UPDATE 1-Star Scientific says 2 products outside tobacco law, shares rise, Reporting by Esha Dey in Bangalore; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier, Reuters, 3/23.2011..
Some related Star Scientific news briefs:
Star Scientifc - filed application with U.S. FDA for approval to market a moist-snuff product.;
Star Scientific, Inc. - U.S. patent office grants request to re-examine patents (2)..;
Star Scientific - developed a moist snuff tobacco product that has extremely low levels of carcinogens -- even lower than snus products..;
Star Scientific - date for oral arguments in patent infringement lawsuit set..;
Star Scientific - U.S. patent Patent and Trademark Office To Consider Reopening Patent Examination..;
Star Scientific asks FDA to certify Ariva-BDL lozenges as less harmful than traditional forms of tobacco..;
Star Scientific - Star Scientific q1 2010 financial report..;
Star Scientific - continue incurring losses on its smokeless-tobacco products..;
Star Scientific asks FDA to certify lozenge less harmful..;
Star Scientific denied new trial in patent infringement - files appeal..;
Star Scientific - NASDAQ trading symbol changed to CIGX..;
Star Scientific - new product (in 2010) to help adult smokers maintain a nicotine-free metabolism..;
Star Scientific - will use its low-nitrosamine tobacco curing process to formulate smokeless tobacco dissolvable smokeless products..
Star Scientific - q2 2009 report..;
Star Scientific - Filing patent for zero-nitrosamine tobacco curing process..;
Star Scientific - 2008 annual report/Stonewall vs other OTC NRTs..;
Star Scientific Corporate Study Stonewall Lozenge in NRT..;
Star Scientific Files Third Quarter Financial Report..;
Star Scientific wants to augment sales of their tobacco lozenges..;
Star Scientific , second quarter 2008, sales down 23.6%..;
Star Scientific Applauds Recent State Legislation - Banning Smoking in Cars with Children..
The Stonewall Lozenge..
Click on image to enlarge..
Stonewall Hard Snuff Packaging - front..
Click on image to enlarge..
Stonewall Hard Snuff Packaging - back..
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New Brunswick - increase tax on tobacco...
March 24, 2011 - Effective midnight on March 22, 2011 taxes on tobacco increase to 17 cents per cigarette (from 11.75 cents) with similar increases on other tobacco products.
(IMPORTANT NOTICE TO ALL TOBACCO RETAILERS AND WHOLESALERS, News Brunswick - Department of Finance.) Taxes on cigarettes will jump from 11.7 cents per cigarette to 17 cents, a $10.50 increase per carton. The tax on a carton of cigarettes will now go up to $34 from $23.50. Taxes on fine cut tobacco and tobacco sticks will rise 62 per cent and 56 per cent respectively.
Higgs said increasing tobacco taxes was often suggested by citizens during his town-hall style pre-budget consultations with the public.
“New Brunswickers sent a clear message to the government that tobacco taxes should be increased to help discourage smoking and help pay for the additional costs smoking imposes on our heath care system,” Higgs said.
Tobacco wholesalers and retailers were required to take an inventory count of all their tobacco products as of 12:01 am March 23, 2011, as they will have to remit the difference in tax on their inventory. The budget says these businesses will be provided with a remittance form for this purpose.
Finance Minister Blaine Higgs introduced an $8-billion budget that includes a nearly $449-million deficit, though the figure is less than half the $1 billion deficit that the government projected last November.
As of yesterday, New Brunswick’s cigarette tax increased $1.31 a pack, a spike that is expected to generate an extra $25 million in annual revenue.
Imperial Tobacco Canada has lambasted the New Brunswick government for increasing taxes on cigarettes. In raising taxes on legal tobacco products in its latest budget, the New Brunswick government had just set out the province’s welcome mat for organized crime to expand its thriving contraband business in the East, the company said in a press note posted on its website. In raising taxes on legal tobacco products in its latest budget, the New Brunswick government had just set out the province’s welcome mat for organized crime to expand its thriving contraband business in the East, the company said in a press note posted on its website. Where are the Royal Canadian Mounted Police - they must put a stop to illicit, illegal, smuggled, contraband tobacco. If you know where the crime is going to occur it should be easier to stop... It starts with high fines and many years of imprisonments..(tobaccowatch.org) (‘Irresponsible taxes’ levied on a legal product, Tobacco Reporter, 3/24/2011)
Reference: New Brunswick Raises Gas and Cigarette Taxes The Canadian province increases cigarette taxes $1.31 per pack and gasoline taxes 11 cents per gallon., nacsonline.com, 3/24/2011; NB Tobacco Tax Increase: A Boon for Organized Crime Atlantic Convenience Stores Association responds to New Brunswick budget ; Tories increase tobacco, fuel taxes NB Liquor also asked to increase revenue by $10 million, CBC News Canada. 2/22/2011.
The Non-Smokers' Rights Association has calculated the average price of a carton of cigarettes in Canada's provinces and territories and how your province or territory ranks in light of the HST coming into force on July 1st in Ontario and B.C.: Average price of 200 cigarettes in Canada's province and territories, as of July 1, 2010
New Brunswick - some related news briefs:
New Brunswick, Canada - New Democratic Party tobacco-control strategy..:
New Brunswick - lawsuit against tobacco companies - outside lawyers can be used..;
New Brunswick - Tobacco Control/Tobacco Investment Conflicting interests..;
New Brunswick - January 1, 2009 Tobacco products to be hidden from view..;
New Brunswick to ban smoking in cars with children or youth present...
New Brunswick - lawsuit against tobacco companies - outside lawyers can be used..;
New Brunswick - Tobacco Control/Tobacco Investment Conflicting interests..;
New Brunswick - January 1, 2009 Tobacco products to be hidden from view..;
New Brunswick to ban smoking in cars with children or youth present...
New Brunswick - lawsuit against tobacco companies - outside lawyers can be used..;
New Brunswick - Tobacco Control/Tobacco Investment Conflicting interests..;
New Brunswick - January 1, 2009 Tobacco products to be hidden from view..;
New Brunswick to ban smoking in cars with children or youth present...
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Georgia - physicians encourage Congress to raise state cigarette tax one dollar per pack..
March 24, 2011 - Georgia doctors gathered today at the Capitol to encourage Congress to increase the state tax on cigarettes by one dollar per pack. The physicians spoke at the Capitol on Wednesday on behalf of the Bump It Up A Buck campaign. They delivered one thousand petitions to the Governor’s office arguing for the $1 hike.
“Tobacco has no redeeming qualities,” said Dr. Harry Heiman of Morehouse Medical School at the press conference. “There is nothing good that comes out of smoking cigarettes. There is no safe dose of tobacco.”
Currently, Georgia lawmakers are working on an amendment which would hike up the tax from 37 cents to 68 cents per pack as part of a larger tax reform bill moving through Congress. The 37- cent tax places Georgia in the 47th spot in the nation.
Directly related news brief:
Georgia - tobacco tax possible increase - now at 37 cents per pack..;
Georgia - tobacco tax increase on the horizon...
The Bump It Up A Buck campaign estimates that a $1 increase would generate $354.5 million per year in state revenue.
According to various studies and polling by tobacco and anti-smoking campaigns, such increase would stop as many as 11,400 Georgia children from reaching for their first smoke and 49,100 adult smokers from continuing the habit.
The Bump it Up a Buck website quotes that the “annual healthcare expenditures in Georgia directly caused by tobacco use” equal to $2.25 billion annually. The state Medicaid program, already in serious financial trouble, spends $537 million a year on smoking related treatments, according to the website.
Reference: Georgia physicians rally in support of a $1 cigarette tax hike, Ewa Kochanska, Atlanta Political Buzz Examiner, examiner.com, 3/23/2011.
Georgia related news brief:
Hospital in Georgia will no longer hirer new employees that use tobacco..
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New Altria Marlboro Leadership Price (MLP) Option - for large retailers...
"We feel philosophically when a supplier tries to dictate how much you can sell a product for, it's inherently not a good policy," said Steve Loehr, vice president of operations support at Kwik Trip, operator of more than 400 stores in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa. "It's not acceptable to us. We're not going to go with the program," Loehr told CSP Daily News.
The Marlboro Leadership Price (MLP) option, available to higher-tier Philip Morris USA retailers, has caused a stir among tobacco retailers--with many unhappy about the price ceilings it sets.
Greg Mathe, spokesperson for Altria Group Inc., and Miguel Martin, senior vice president and general manager of Altria Sales & Distribution, took some time out to discuss the controversial contract option with CSP Daily News companion newsletter Tobacco E-News.
Considering the current economic environment, we are aware that adult smokers are changing why they choose a store to purchase cigarettes. And most adult smokers have stated that the lowest price on cigarettes was the most important factor in choosing a store.
The MLP option is meant to help them meet adult smoker's expectations and help keep Marlboro competitive in the marketplace. Our stated objective of this program is pretty straightforward: To reward retailers who offer a competitive Marlboro single-pack price to adult smokers.
For more - see references..
References: Marlboro's Contract Cap Industry upset by Altria's latest program, "recommended maximum price" by Linda Abu-Shalback Zid & Mitch Morrison, CSP Daily News, 3/18/2011; Altria Talks MLP Execs respond to retailer concerns about program's "recommended maximum" Marlboro price by Linda Abu-Shalback Zid, CSP Daily News, 3/24/2011.
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Sweden - in 2010 Nicotine replacement therapy sales soar..
March 23, 2011 - Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) products in Sweden jumped 10 percent last year compared to 2009 as they become more easily available across the country, according to figures from the Apoteket Service.
A total of 2.75 million packs of smoking cessation products were sold for slightly more than 524 million kronor ($79.39 million), representing a 9 percent increase in the value of products sold compared to 2009. The figures compiled by news agency TT demonstrate that nicotine replacement therapy sales are rapidly increasing in Sweden. The sales of the goods have become more widespread than ever and are more accessible to consumers.
However, those who use the products and are trying to quit cigarettes and snus risk falling into a new addiction.
Margaretha Haglund, a tobacco policy expert who used to be at the Swedish National Institute of Public Health (Statens folkhälsoinstitut) now at the think tank Tobacco Facts, pointed out that the products are now clearly commercialised. "They can be purchased in more places and accordingly, there are also more people who are buying them," she said.
Haglund added that there is a risk that the products are not seen the same way as before as aids to smoking cessation.
"Now, when one looks at the marketing, there are more materials one can resort to when he or she cannot or is not allowed to smoke," she pointed out.
Whether the sales increase represents an actual decline in smoking is unclear. Smoking in general is steadily decreasing, but the proportion of Swedes who call themselves former smokers has remained fairly constant in recent years, according to agency statistics.
A negative result of the sales is that people can also become addicted to the products.
Margaretha Stålnacke, a tobacco cessation counselor for the national smoking cessation hotline, said that it receives calls from people who have become addicted to nicotine cessation remedies. "It happens quite frequently. The recommended period of use of the products is three months. A number of those who contact us have used the products for about a year or even several years," she said.
As a nicotine-gum addict, Mike Metzger used to worry about the warning on its label: "Stop using the nicotine gum at the end of 12 weeks." But that was before a prominent smoking-cessation scientist, K. Michael Cummings, told him to keep chewing the gum as long as it helped him stay off cigarettes. So 15 years after quitting smoking, Mr. Metzger, a 63-year old retired New York telephone worker, still chews 16 pieces of nicotine. (A one- to two-week supply of nicotine gum can cost $50 to $70.) (Chew On This: Sticking With Nicotine Gum for the Long Haul by DAVID KESMODEL and KEVIN HELLIKER, The Wall Street Journal, 3/1/2011.
Reference: Nicotine replacement therapy sales soar, The Local, 1/24/2011.
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Sweden - proposal to ban tobacco displays.
Government parties are however resisting the move due to lack of available data connecting a ban with a decrease in tobacco sales.
New Zealand - study revives interest in keeping tobacco hidden..
Eva Olofsson, of the Left Party, is one of the advocates for a ban. “The aim is to get less people overall to smoke and less children and young people to start smoking. To achieve that, sales must decrease. This might be one way to tackle that,“ she said to Sveriges Radio (SR).
The UK Health Department decided earlier this month to ban tobacco displays from large stores in England from April 2012, with smaller shops following suit by 2015 at the latest. Scotland and Northern Ireland are well on their way towards banning displays of tobacco. In Europe, it is already implemented in Ireland, Finland, Norway and Iceland.
Across the globe countries like Australia, Canada, Thailand and the republic of Trinidad and Tobago have also decided to ban the displays.
However, the Swedish government parties aren't convinced. According to Ulrik Lindgren of the ministry of health and social affairs, this is due to the lack of data supporting a connection between a ban and a decrease in tobacco sales.
According to Sveriges Radio, tobacco companies are of the same opinion. Ulrika Dennerborg, of Philip Morris Sweden, told SR that sales figures from Norway where a ban is implemented, give no indication of a decrease in sales. “This measure has no proven effect, but what it does achieve is remove any chance to compete on the market,” she told SR.
The Swedish National Institute of Public Health (Folkhälsoinstitutet) supports the ban on tobacco displays. According to the institute, the number of smokers in Sweden today is low by international standards, with 13 percent of Swedish women and 11 percent of men smoking on a daily basis. But despite these figures, the total tobacco usage in Sweden is till significant, mainly due to the Swedes’ moist snuff (snus) habits.
19 percent of Swedish men and 4 percent of Swedish women use snuff every day.
Since the beginning of 2000 the number of adult tobacco users has decreased every year, according to institute figures, but the number of young users has remained unchanged. Among boys, tobacco use has in fact increased.
Smokers are costing Swedish municipalities 2.6 billion kronor ($367 million) per annum in the form of breaks and sickness absences, a new report from the Swedish Public Health Institute (Statens Folkhälsoinstitut) shows.
Sweden - Umeå ICA suerpermarket - no cigarettes for sale..
Reference: Public health body backs call for tobacco-display ban. The Local, 3/22/2011.
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PMI - CAGE Conference March 28, 2011..
March 23, 2011 - Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) will host a live audio webcast of its presentation at the Consumer Analyst Group of Europe (CAGE) conference in London, U.K., at www.pmi.com on Monday, March 28, 2011, at approximately 10:30 a.m. local time (5:30 a.m. ET).
Webcast Presentation at Consumer Analyst Group of Europe (CAGE) Conference
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Nigeria - Tobacco Control Bill - pass into law ASAP..
Nigeria - two years after, Senate passes Tobacco Control Bill..
We commend this step by the Senate and plead with the House not to water down this laudable bill. Passing it into law could help this set of lawmakers become one of the most proactive to have passed through the hallowed chambers. It is a great contribution to public health. We make this appeal because we know that tobacco products have for several years wreaked havoc on our people. This is our opportunity to curb this terrible scourge.
Reference: The tobacco control bill, NEXT Editorial, 234next.com, 3/22/2011
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Turkey - In 2010 tobacco consumption decreased by 13.2 percent over the preceding year..
In 2010 tobacco consumption in Turkey decreased by 13.2 percent over the preceding year, according to data from the Tobacco and Alcohol Market Regulatory Agency (TAPDK) that indicates the law banning smoking in public venues, which was introduced in a partial ban in 2008, has yielded favorable results.
A law banning smoking in all public venues, including all educational, health, commercial, social, cultural, sports and entertainment facilities and their corridors, went into full effect on July 19, 2009. In 2008, the first year of the smoking ban, the number of cigarettes sold in Turkey stood at 107.89 billion. The number of cigarettes sold decreased by 405 million in 2009, when the law was expanded to all public venues, including all restaurants, coffeehouse, cafeterias and bars.
The number of packages of cigarettes consumed decreased to 12.78 million last year from 14.73 million in 2009. The available data explains that the law banning smoking in public venues was the major reason behind a decrease in tobacco consumption.
Turkey currently ranks fifth in the world and third among European countries in terms of full compliance with smoking bans. The law requires that all restaurants, coffeehouses, cafeterias and bars have an appropriate outdoor area if they wish to serve smokers. The ban calls for a TL 69 fine for those who smoke in a prohibited area and a fine of up to TL 5,600 for operators who allow it to happen.
Reference: Smoking ban followed by 13.3 pct decline in tobacco consumption in 2010, todayszaman.com, 3/15/2011.
Turkey - some related news briefs:
Turks spend 94.2 billion liras on cigarettes in 5 years..;
Turkey - tobacco control efforts must move forward..;
Turkey - like other tobacco growing countries worried that WHO will eliminate blended tobacco..;
Turkey - Cigarette consumption drops by 16 percent but increase in youth smoking..;
Turkey - smokers re-packaging cigarettes to avoid looking at graphic warnings..;
Turkey - WHO presents Prime Minister Erdoğan with award..;
Turkey - smoking ban a year later, goals are being achieved..;
Turkey - even in tea houses smoking ban is working..;
Turkey - smoking ban compliance excellent and cigarette sales drop 15 percent..;
Turkey - two television stations successfuly challenge fines..;
Turkey - two TV stations fined for airing shows featuring smokers..;
Turkey - smoking still major problem despite countrywide ban..;
Turkey - state tobacco monopoly sold workers still want jobs..;
Turkey - overall, smoking ban is working..;
Turkey - court overrules TAPDK on tobacco labels..;
Turkey - cigarette producers sue to reduce size of graphic images..;
WHO to unveil new 2009 tobacco epidemic report in Turkey..;
Turkey - graphic/written warning labels starting January 1, 2010..;
Turkey - with expansion of smoking ban cigarette sales drop..;
Turkey - smoking ban, cafes (teahouses) losing business, owners threaten to strike..;
Turkey - hundreds of cafe owners demonstrate against smoking ban..;
Turkey - small--scale retailers to demonstrate against smoking ban..;
Turkey - anti-smoking advocates happy with early results of smoking ban..; Turkey - smoker wounds manager and kills his friend when asked to stop smoking..
Turkey - cafe owners complain about smoking ban..;
Turkey - dangers of secondhand smoke media campaign..;
Turkish Government - makes major move to improve the health of its citizens..;
Turkey - smoking ban starting July 19th will be enforced - these guys are serious..;
Turkey - poll indicates employers, their employees and customers support smoking ban in cafes, bars and restaurants..;
Turkey - July 19th total smoking ban, will employees lose jobs..;
Turkey - on July 19, 2009 will mark the beginning of “100 percent smoke-free air” in this country..;
Turkey - national smoking ban starts July 19, 2009..;
Turkey - quit smoking photo displayed in İstanbul's Taksim Square..;
Turkey - data on tobacco usage - Turkish Statistics Institution..;
Turkey - smoking ban in all bars, restaurants and coffeehouses starting July 19, 2009..;
Smoking ban in Turkey lowers cigarette consumption..;
Turkey's ban on pubic smoking goes into effect on Monday, May 19, 2008..;
British American Tobacco (BAT) reported group volume sales up for first quarter 2008..;
More on the quick fix for outdoor smokers..;
BAT to Acquire Most of Denmark's ST..;
More on Philip Morris International of the Future..;
WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic 2008...
Read more...
Passive smoking 'puts 460 Coventry kids in hospital'..
The Big Pledge campaign
March 22, 2011 - More than 460 children in Coventry were rushed to hospital last year with diseases linked to passive smoking. (Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. More Coventry..
The youngsters – all aged 16 or under – needed emergency treatment for meningitis, asthma, pneumonia and chest infections. That accounts for nearly one in 10 kids seen in A&E at University Hospital during the last 12 months. It has raised fears that passive smoking (second hand smoking, shs, environmental tobacco smoking, involuntary smoking, sidestrea smoke) putting thousands of Coventry children at risk.
Now parents are being urged to make a Big Pledge to protect their children by stopping smoking.
Councillor Joseph Clifford, chair of Coventry’s Smokefree Alliance, urged parents to stop smoking in front of their kids, even if they could not quit.
“In recent days we have seen a lot of pain and suffering in Japan that we can do nothing about,” he said.
“Smoking is a problem we can do something about, particularly smoking in front of children.” This month the government announced a ban on tobacco displays in shops to stop the industry recruiting young smokers. (UK - Tobacco Plan A Victory For Public Health..)
But many parents continue to advertise cigarettes to their children and put them at risk by smoking. Estimates suggest at least nine out of every 10 city kids have a close family member who smokes heavily. Do you love your children.. Do you want the best for your children.. Then don't let people smoke around your children.. Do you get it..
Breathing in second-hand smoke increases the risk of children suffering meningitis, asthma, pneumonia, chest infections and ear diseases. Passive smoking is the biggest, but not only, cause of such illnesses.
Children are frequently exposed to particularly high concentrations of second-hand smoke in cars. An open window offers little protection. So the British Lung Foundation is campaigning to ban smoking in cars with children in. (UK - Brits to petition govt to put a stop to adults smoking in cars when youngsters are present..)
Regional spokesman Jeremy Bacon said the charity was not trying to boss people around but protect kids. He said: “We go through the trouble of strapping our children in because we want them to be safe. But at the same time we potentially damage them by lighting up a cigarette.”
The Shadow Project runs classes in most city schools to teach children about the dangers of smoking. The charity invited the Telegraph to Barrs Hill School, in Radford, to watch a session with 11-year-old pupils. This revealed a shocking snapshot of the problem in Coventry.
More than 95 percent had close family who smoked and one girl admitted trying cigarettes herself. Nicky Radcliffe, healthy lifestyle co-ordinator for the Shadow Project, said that picture was repeated across the city. She hoped the pupils would convince more to quit altogether.
More than a quarter of adults in Coventry continue to smoke, well above the national average. So the Telegraph is backing The Big Pledge campaign, which offers smokers free NHS help to quit.
City health trust NHS Coventry – which is spearheading the campaign – hopes parents will seize this opportunity and make a Big Pledge to protect their children by kicking the habit for good.
Get more details on the Big Pledge at www.coventrytelegraph.net or www.thebigpledge.co.uk.
For help to quit in Coventry text PLEDGE followed by your name and address to 81025 or call 0800 051 1310.
Sign the British Lung Foundation’s children’s charter petition visit Children's Charter.
Reference: Passive smoking 'puts 460 Coventry kids in hospital', coventrytelegraph.net, 2/22/2011.
Read more...
Scotland - Five years of the public smoking ban..
Five years on from its implementation on 26 March, 2006, the success or otherwise of the ban very much depends on who you ask.
Research in Glasgow has suggested almost immediate health benefits. One study in 2007 concluded heart attacks among non-smokers had fallen by a fifth since the ban came in. And last year more research found that the rate of hospitalisations for children with asthmatic symptoms had dropped by more than 18 per cent year-on-year since the ban, the assumption being smoker parents are also cutting down at home.
Jill Pell, professor of public health at Glasgow University, who was involved in the research, said: "We have seen improvements in many aspects of health, including reductions in heart disease and respiratory disease. The legislation has not only reduced exposure to tobacco smoke in public places, such as pubs, but has also resulted in an increase in voluntary restrictions in people's homes.
"As a result exposure has fallen among children too young to frequent pubs.
"Hospital admissions for asthma in children have already fallen and further benefits will be realised as children grow older and fewer develop heart disease and cancer than would otherwise have done so."
More comments on the five years of the smoking ban see Reference..
Widespread support for smoking ban in Scotland..
Reference: Five years of the smoking ban by Lyndsay Moss, Scotsman.com, 3/22/2011
Read more...
American Legacy Foundation Latest Fact Sheet, March 21, 2011....
March 22, 2011
Fact Sheet: Socio-Economic Status & Smoking Fact Sheet.
Read more...
PAPER: 2009 U.S. Federal cigarette excise tax increase smokers found ways to tax free cheap cigarettes..
March 22, 2010 -
PAPER: Using Search Query Surveillance to Monitor Tax Avoidance and Smoking Cessation following the United States' 2009 “SCHIP” Cigarette Tax Increase, John W. Ayers1, Kurt Ribisl, John S. Brownstein, PLoS ONE 6(3): e16777. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0016777, ABSTRACT/FULLTEXT>.
According to an analysis of Internet search data, the 2009 U.S. federal cigarette excise tax increase successfully drove many smokers online to find ways to quit smoking, but more often smokers responded by shopping online for tax-free or cheap cigarettes in an apparent effort to evade the tax hike.
The study is the first evaluation of smokers’ responses to the tax, which increased from $0.39 to $1.01 per pack under the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, or SCHIP, reforms. The findings are published in the March 16 edition of PLoS One.
Read more...
EQUIPP (Europe Quitting: Progress & Pathway) report..
March 22, 2011 -
The following organisations have endorsed the EQUIPP (Europe Quitting: Progress & Pathway)
report. (Bridgehead International, EQUIPP: Europe Quitting: Progress and Pathways, London, 2011)
The European Network for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention (ENSP),The German Society for Pneumology (DGP,Deutsche Gesellschaft für Pneumologie und Beatmungsmedizin) together with the
Bundesverband der Pneumologen (BdP) (German Association of Pulomonologists, The European Respiratory Society.
EQUIPP (Europe Quitting: Progress & Pathway Report
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: (partial)
Introduction
Tobacco use continues to be the single largest cause of death
and disease in the European Union (EU).2 Tobacco kills as many
as 650,000 Europeans every year – more than the population of
Malta or Luxembourg.3 Smoking causes more health problems
than, for example, alcohol, illicit drugs, blood pressure, obesity
or cholesterol.4 The economic cost of smoking was estimated
at €98-€103 billion in 2000 or around 1% of the gross domestic
product of the EU.5
Smoking accounts for 12–20 years of life lost and up to 21% of
deaths according to the World Health Organization (WHO)/Europe
tobacco control database,6 and is a major cause of death from
cancer, cardiovascular disease and pulmonary disease.7 Tobacco
smoking kills half of all lifetime users, with half of these dying in
middle age (between 35 and 69 years old).8
In Europe, the estimated daily smoking prevalence is around
28.6%9 but even a small reduction in this figure could lead to a
reduction in the number of smokers dying prematurely.10 Smoking
prevalence rates are generally stabilising or decreasing, however
smoking rates for females are slightly increasing in some Eastern
EU Member States.11 Youth smoking is also still a significant
problem in some European countries,12 and the rate of smoking
amongst European school children (aged 13-15) is 18%, which
is about twice the global average for that age.13 Children are
starting smoking at a younger age and in some Member States,
the average age for initiation has been reported as low as 11
years old.14
Thus, tobacco use continues to be a major public health problem
within Europe.
The economic burden of smoking on society is tremendous, with
the annual global cost of tobacco use estimated by the WHO at
US$500 billion.15 This figure includes direct healthcare expenditure,
lost earnings and reduced productivity, and other costs. Quitting,
or reducing smoking, has both economic and health benefits for
the smoker16 and there are also health benefits to the households
of smokers when second-hand smoke is removed.17 Similarly, the
introduction of smoke-free legislation is associated with health
benefits to co-workers.18
Twenty years ago, smoking was regarded purely as a habit but
now the WHO has provided an International Classification of
Disease code (ICD-10 code19) for tobacco dependence.
Likewise, nicotine dependence is listed by the Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR 305.1020).
The WHO estimates that 75%-85% of smokers would like to
quit and that around one-third have made at least three serious
attempts. However, less than half of smokers succeed in stopping
permanently before the age of 60.21 Although a smoker can quit
without help, long-term abstinence is higher when the attempt is
aided medically.22
Smoking cessation services such as brief interventions,
behavioural therapy, self-help materials, provision of
pharmacotherapy or a combination of tactics can be a
cost-effective way to help smokers quit.23 Smoking cessation
services led by General Practitioners (GPs) are cost-effective24 and
good value for money. However, other healthcare professionals
(HCPs) such as secondary care physicians, pharmacists, dentists
and oral health professionals, nurses, and respiratory therapists
can all provide valuable smoking cessation interventions. For
example, smoking cessation interventions for in-patients have
been shown to reduce rehospitalisation and total mortality.25,26
01.02
Framework Convention on Tobaco Control
The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) is the first
international public health treaty and it has contributed to a change
in public perceptions about the need for regulations, and given new
impetus to efforts to control the harm caused by tobacco.27 The
FCTC requires that signatories enact comprehensive legislation to,
amongst other things, restrict exposure to second-hand smoke,
raise tobacco taxes, reduce smuggling, restrict tobacco advertising
and increase the health warnings on tobacco packaging.28 The
FCTC came into force in February 2005, and as of October 2010 it
had been ratified by 172 countries.29
It is important to remember that smoking is a disease of
dependency that can be successfully treated, and this should be
in the forefront of debate on smoking cessation. Article 14 of the
FCTC represents a clear commitment of parties to the FCTC to
tackle tobacco dependence. Guidelines on how countries should
implement Article 14, produced by a working group of national
experts, have recently been adopted by parties to the FCTC.30
This report assesses the preparedness of 20 European countries
(including Switzerland and the Czech Republic which have yet to
ratify the FCTC)31 to enact the required legislation and implement
policies compliant with the FCTC.
01.03
Report methodology
Experts in each of the 20 countries studied were interviewed
from June to October 2010 and, where possible, factual
information was verified and appropriate references supplied.
The country-specific reports and country-specific recommendations
were drawn from the views of the interviewees and their
recommendations were endorsed by the Editorial Partners.
01.04
Key recommendations (incomplete)
This report makes a number of recommendations to reduce
smoking prevalence and the demand for tobacco products.
These recommendations are based on country-specific
recommendations provided by the interviewees combined with
the Editorial Partners’ own experience and views. The following
recommendations are presented in the order of the themes
within this report (rather than editorial preference) and have been
endorsed by the Editorial Partners.
Increase tobacco prices
Increasing tobacco prices (through increased taxation), is supportive
of the FCTC and has been proven to lead to a decrease in tobacco
consumption.32,33 Increasing tobacco prices increases government
revenue,34 whilst encouraging smokers to quit and seek help,35,36
and thereby decreasing the demand for tobacco.37
Country-specific recommendations
In addition to the above key recommendations, this report
provides recommendations relevant to each country such as
tightening the existing smoke-free legislation, providing the
healthcare professionals with guidelines in their local language and
improving education for the general public so that they can better
understand smoking as a disease and the resources available to
help them quit (e.g. quitlines).
Countries covered in this report are:
Austria Italy
Belgium Luxembourg
Czech Republic Netherlands
Denmark Norway
Finland Poland
France Portugal
Germany Spain
Greece Sweden
Hungary Switzerland
Ireland United Kingdom
These countries were chosen, based on the quality and depth
of the data available from desk research, and to provide a broad
overview of smoking cessation services across Europe.
Read more...
FDA TPSAC - Report on Menthol Cigarettes..
March 22, 2011
TPSAC - Report on Menthol Cigarettes, presented to the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products..
Menthol Cigarettes - alter the menthol concentration so cigarettes will not be so appealing to young smokers..
U.S. FDA for our children must limit the availability of menthol cigarettes..
Chapter 1: OVERVIEW: WHAT THIS REPORT IS ABOUT
Chapter 2: TPSAC’S APPROACH TO ITS CHARGE
CHAPTER 3: THE PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF MENTHOL CIGARETTES
CHAPTER 4: PATTERNS OF MENTHOL CIGARETTE SMOKING
CHAPTER 5: MARKETING AND CONSUMER PERCEPTION
CHAPTER 6: EFFECTS OF MENTHOL CIGARETTES ON INITIATION, ADDICTION AND CESSATION
CHAPTER 7: EFFECTS OF MENTHOL ON THE DISEASE RISKS OF SMOKING
CHAPTER 8: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . .
OVERALL CONCLUSIONS
Based on the conclusions to the nine questions, TPSAC provides the following general conclusions:
• Menthol cigarettes have an adverse impact on public health in the United States.
• There are no public health benefits of menthol compared to non•menthol cigarettes.
Read more...
KIck Butts, Mayor's Wellness Campaign,
March 22, 2011 - Parsippany, New Jersey will be among five municipalities where public employees will compete to quit smoking. The township will join Paterson, Vineland, West Milford and Woodbridge in the "Kick Butts'' competition, launched by the Mayor's Wellness Campaign (MWC), in conjunction with the New Jersey Healthcare Quality Institute and Pfizer pharmaceutical company and Fox Chase Cancer Center.
The winning municipality will be whichever has the highest number of public employees who have gone the longest without smoking. The results will be announced at a press conference in September.
The employees will be following a program designed by Fox Chase Cancer Center to to help even heavy smokers kit and avoid a potential relapse, according to Dr. Suzanne M. Miller, director of Psychosocial and Biobehavioral Medicine Program at Fox Chase and Dr. Amy Lazev, assistant research professor at Fox Chase.
"There are no losers in this competition," Littman said. "At the end of the contest, every participating municipality will receive a $1,000 grant after providing the MWC with all the documentation required."
The Mayors Wellness Campaign is an initiative of the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute , in partnership with the New Jersey State League of Municipalities. It supports mayors as champions of community health.
Reference: No Butts About It: Parsippany Enters Competition to Help Employees Quit Smoking by Carrie Stetler, parsippany.patch.com, 3/21/2011.
Some New Jersey related news briefs:
New Jersey - more high school kids and adults smoking - preventive funding way down..;
New Jersey - governor has proposed eliminating state funding of tobacco control program..;
Somerset, NJ - high school participates in National Kick Butts Day..;
N.J. Assembly committee approves e-cigarette ban..;
New Jersey town bans smoking on beach, boardwalk, sidewalk..;
New Jersey - legislation proposed to prohibit sale of e-cigarettes..;
New Jersey assemblywoman wants to limit electronic (e) cigarettes..;
E-cigarettes need to establish efficacy and safety - FIRST...
New Jersey - Senator Buono bill would ban smoking in public parks and beaches..;
New Jersey bans flavored cigarettes..;
New Jersey May Ban Certain Flavored Cigarettes..;
Read more...
16th Annual Kick Butts Day, March 23, 2011..
Thousands of young people at hundreds of events from coast-to-coast are taking action today, March 23, 2011 — the day for youth to STAND OUT ... SPEAK UP ... and SEIZE CONTROL AGAINST BIG TOBACCO.
Hundreds of events from coast-to-coast..
For a list of Kick Butts Day events in New York and other states..
Sponsored by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Kick Butts Day is an annual celebration of youth leadership and activism in the fight against tobacco use. Kids are sending two powerful messages on Kick Butts Day: They want the tobacco companies to stop targeting them with marketing for cigarettes and other tobacco products, and they want elected leaders to do more to protect them from tobacco.
The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and other public health advocates are calling on elected officials to support proven measures to reduce tobacco use and its devastating toll. As states struggle with budget deficits, legislators should increase tobacco taxes both to prevent kids from smoking and to raise revenue to balance budgets and fund critical programs. States should also enact smoke-free air laws that apply to all workplaces and public places and implement well-funded tobacco prevention and cessation programs.
Read more...
Scotland - DRINKING, drug use and smoking among schoolchildren have fallen to the lowest level in two decades..
The findings come from the latest Health Behaviours in School-aged Children (HBSC) Scotland report, which was funded by NHS Health Scotland. Professor Candace Currie, director of the child and adolescent research unit at Edinburgh University, said rates of drinking and smoking had been declining. Levels peaked in the late Nineties and have been coming down. She said: “We are back down at levels of current smoking and weekly drinking that we saw in 1990.
“Levels peaked in the late Nineties and have been coming down.
“Some people have suggested the ban on smoking in public places supported this decline, as there are fewer people visibly smoking. “It is likely to be a downward trend resulting from health education messages in school during the last decade.” The survey of nearly 7,000 children found the rate of daily smoking among 15-year-olds has fallen from 16 per cent in 2002 to 11 per cent last year.
The number of young people drinking alcohol at least once a week dropped by more than a third, and experimental and regular cannabis use halved.
Daily sweet consumption reduced by a third, and consumption of crisps and chips halved. But only just over a third of youngsters said they eat fruit and vegetables daily. In 2006, the proportion of youngsters meeting recommended activity levels had reached 26 per cent. But by last year, only 15 per cent of children were taking part in moderate exercise for at least 60 minutes every day. Girls were less active than boys, with just 11 per cent meeting the guidelines compared to 19 per cent of boys.
More are playing on computers, with 65 per cent of boys and 29 per cent of girls spending at least two hours a day on games during weekdays.
Professor Currie said there was still “some way to go” to increase levels of exercise among youngsters. But she added: “There is lots of action going on at the moment to address it, with physical activity promotion in schools and clubs. “So it might just be we haven’t yet seen the impact of that.”
Reference: SCOTTISH KIDS KICKING UNHEALTHY HABITS by Judith Duffy, EXPRESS.co.uk, 2/22/2011.
Scotland - some related news briefs:
Scotland - Alcohol and Tobacco Policy Summit, March 15, 2011, Edinburgh..;
Scotland - politicians and staff at Holyrood can smoke only at designated area..;
Smoking in a car, even if window is open, exposes a child to dangerous levels of poisonous particles..;
Scotland - plain cigarette packaging - may take the lead in tobacco control..;
Scotland - Lady Dr. Eileen Crofton a leading anti-smoking campaigner and health advocate dies at 91..;
Scotland - ASH publishes recommendations for a new Scottish tobacco control strategy..;
Scotland - approximtely one-third have quit smoking when being paid to do so..;
Scotland - Imperial Tobacco loses attempt to overturn ban on cigarette displays and removal of vending machines..;
Scotland - mainly shopkeepers oppose tobacco display ban..;
Scotland - smoking ban produced benefits for people (i.e., children) who are not exposed to occupational tobacco smoke..;
Scotland - 90% of Scots back law that prosecutes adults for buying cigarettes for children..;
Scotland, Grampian Region - latest word, NHS Grampian hospital smoking clampdown delayed..;
Scotland - bribing people to live a healthy lifestyle..;
Scotland - Imperial Tobacco in legal action to stop ban on cigarette displays and vending machine removal..;
Scotland - tobacco industry says massive increase in illegal cigarettes..;
PAPER: Scotland Unhealthy risk factors those with lack of education/ low income..;
Scotland - renewing efforts to stop pregnant women from smoking..;
Scotland - cigarette smoking quit attempts increase by 35%..;
Scotland - retailers can provide input on future to ban the display of tobacco..;
Scotland - campaigners want more to be done to protect young people from passive smoking..;
Scotland - government no plans to ban smoking in cars and public places used by children..;
Scotland - smokers will be banned from fostering or adopting children, comments from Professor Banzhaf..;
Scotland - parliament votes to ban retail cigarette displays and vending machines..;
Scotland - health minister urges smokers to quit..;
Scotland - some men beginning to lead a healthier lifestyle and therefore living longer..;
Scotland - self-reporting of smoking by pregnant women underestimates true number of pregnant smokers..;
Scotland - tobacco firms claim proposed display ban is unnecessary..;
"Glasgow effect" - prevalence of cigarette smoking impact on poor health..;
Scotland - tobacco industry will try to stop attempts to curb sales to young people..;
Scotland - cigarette vending machines removal..;
Scottish politicans most have the courage to protect the health of their constituents..;
Scotland - small businesses given extra 2-years to remove tobacco displays..;
Northern Ireland - assembly approves ban on display of tobacco items..;
Scotland to ban cigarette displays and outlaw cigarette vending machines..;
Bar workers who smoke also benefit from smoking ban..;
17 countries in the world ban indoor smoking - ENFORCEMENT..;
England, Wales to ban tobacco displays in shops..;
Definite Health Benefits of Smoking Bans..;
Northern Ireland raising age for sale of tobacco from 16 to 18 joining the other three United Kingdom (UK) countries..;
Scotland proposes to implement more measures to discourage tobacco use including the banning of tobacco displays..;
Raise Age to 21 to Purchase Tobacco Products...
(United Kingdom)
Read more...
Laguna Woods - city would be the first in Orange County to ban smoking on patios and balconies in multi-unit residential areas..
March 22, 2011 - Laguna Woods has become the first city in Orange County, California, to prohibit tobacco smokers from lighting up on their home patios or balconies, according to a story by Claire Webb for the Orange County Register.
The City Council’s new law, which will go into effect in just under a month, will apply whether the patios are open or enclosed, though residents would be allowed to smoke tobacco on enclosed patios if all patio windows and doors were closed.
The city adopted an ordinance prohibiting smoking in enclosed and unenclosed public areas. The ordinance was amended in 2006 to prohibit smoking in shared carports and entryways in multi-family residential buildings.
In December, the council asked that its ordinance be revised to prohibit smoking in and on unenclosed patios and balconies in multifamily residential facilities – apartments, condominiums, cooperatives and group homes. The council also considered prohibiting smoking
inside homes unless all windows and doors of the units are closed, but tabled that provision for further study.
"We are not yet ready to regulate smoking within houses," said Mayor Pro Tem Cynthia Conners.
Laguna Hills and Laguna Beach have similar policies that prohibit smoking on outdoor patios and balconies for restaurants and dining areas. Some cities in Orange County have banned smoking at public parks and beaches. Huntington Beach, Laguna Beach, Newport Beach, Seal Beach and San Clemente have ordinances that prohibit smoking on beaches and piers, according to Earth Resource Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on environmental education.
Keane said the city's code enforcement officer first would issue a warning and would cite a resident if complaints continued. A citation carries a fine of up to $50. Each day a violation continues is considered a new violation, according to the report.
Outside Orange County, Belmont has prohibited smoking inside all apartments and condominiums that share common walls with another unit. Calabasas has prohibited smoking in all indoor and outdoor common areas in multi-unit housing, and in Northern California, Dublin, CA strengthens smoking rules for apartment complexes with 16 or more units - San Francisco Bay Area..
Thirteen cities and jurisdictions in California - Contra Costa County, Sebastopol, South Pasadena, Pinole, Pleasant Hill, Richmond, Rohnert Park, Dublin, Loma Linda, Novato, Calabasas, Belmont and Temecula – have prohibited smoking in a certain percentage of units in multiunit housing complexes, according to The Center for Tobacco Policy & Organizing. The ordinances are an attempt to protect tenants from exposure to secondhand smoke, according to center reports.
Thirty four cities and counties in California have smoke-free housing policies, meaning ordinances that restrict smoking in residential areas in an effort to address secondhand smoke affecting neighboring units, according to the center.
Policies on the city and county level can range from requiring smoking to be prohibited in a certain percentage of units to encouraging landlords to designate nonsmoking units.
Another Orange County new brief: California - La Palma's Central Park will be tobacco-free starting February 1, 2011..
Reference: Residential patio smoking ban first in O.C. by CLAIRE WEBB, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 2/17/2011.
Read more...
Study: Smoke-Free Environments - Linked to Less Breast Cancer..
U.S. researchers compared rates of non-smoking homes and workplaces with state-specific rates of breast cancer incidence and death. States with higher numbers of smoke-free homes and workplaces had significantly fewer breast cancer deaths, particularly among younger premenopausal women.
Researchers estimate that about 20 percent of the change in breast-cancer death rates is due to changes in smoke-free home and workplace policies.
Research letter: Prevalence of rules prohibiting home and workplace smoking correlates with state-specific breast cancer outcomes: an ecologic analysis. Kenneth M Piazza (kenneth.piazza@roswellpark.org), Andrew Hyland, Research Letter..
The study by researchers in the department of health behavior at Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, N.Y., was released online March 12 in advance of publication in an upcoming print issue of the journal Tobacco Control.
"While the evidence for secondhand smoke and breast cancer risk remains controversial, this study demonstrates a very strong inverse correlation. States with higher percentages of women working and living in smoke-free spaces have lower breast cancer rates," study author Andrew Hyland said in an institute news release.
Reference: Smoke-Free Environments Linked to Less Breast Cancer States with more workplace bans, non-smoking homes have fewer cases of the disease: study, Health Day News, 3/18/2011.
Read more...
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TOPIX PAPERS - 2008 & 2009..