Health officials: Despite any intentions, cigarette fee would have saved lives

OKLAHOMA CITY (KOKH) —

Health officials in Oklahoma said they are disappointed the price of cigarettes will not go up in the state.

A law, the state Supreme Court struck down Thursday, would have added $1.50 in fees to every pack sold in Oklahoma.

"So now 7,000 people are doomed unless we change that," Terry Cline said. "Unless we increase that price point."

Cline is the Oklahoma Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Commissioner of Health.

He said cigarettes are the number one cause of preventable death in Oklahoma, saying smoking kills more than 7,000 Oklahomans a year.

Clines said no matter the true intentions behind the law, increasing the price of cigarettes is the single-most effective way to stop smoking.

"The price point at a $1.50 increase is enough for people to quit or they won't pick up the habit," Cline said.

John Woods, with the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust, or TSET, agreed. TSET works to get Oklahomans to live health lives.

"There's a lot that we can do. There's a lot we do here at TSET, but certainly raising the prices of cigarettes is one of the most effective tools to reduce the burden of smoking," Woods said.
Related: Ruling on 'cigarette fee' a blow to mental health providers

He said the fee was projected to keep 28,200 children from becoming adult smokers. It was supposed to cause 30,400 adults smokers to quit, he said. The measure would have also saved millions of dollars in health care costs.

Woods and Cline said this is a police they hope lawmakers will continue to consider.

"It's an epidemic and it's something we're cognizant of and we need to do to reduce that preventable death for our state and for our citizens," Woods said.

"If you have the power as a legislator, of as the people to actually prevent an entire generation of people from smoking, what a gift it is for this generation and the next one," Cline said,

Resource : http://okcfox.com/news/local/health-officials-despite-any-intentions-cigarette-fee-would-have-saved-lives

Man dies after altercation over cigarette

He should have butt out.

Michael Page-Vincelli, 22, died after an altercation with a woman who tossed her cigarette out of a car in Burnaby, British Columbia, according to CBC News.

Page-Vincelli watched the woman throw the cigarette butt and then he picked it up and threw it back at her, witnesses told the outlet.

The cigarette thrower, along with another man then followed Page-Vincelli into a nearby Starbucks, exiting “two minutes later,” a witness said.

When the person went inside the coffee joint to see what happened, he saw Page-Vincelli lying on the floor bleeding.

Witnesses inside the coffee shop told the outlet Page-Vincelli was punched and fell to the ground, hitting his head on the counter on the way down.

He was brought to an area hospital, where he died three days later.

The death is being investigated as a homicide, and no charges have been filed yet, the outlet reported.

Resource : http://nypost.com/2017/08/10/man-dies-after-altercation-over-cigarette/

5 Things You Got Absolutely Wrong About E-Cigarettes And E-Shishas

We have all had (or at least known) that one friend who brought an electronic cigarette (or e-cigarette) so that they could quit smoking. The assumption at play? That while cigarettes are harmful and while tobacco causes diseases like cancer and heart diseases, e-cigarettes are harmless, benign, and pose zero health risks. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

That e-cigarettes and e-shishas help in quitting smoking is only one of the many popular myths that surround their sale and usage. The truth is that researchers (unless they are funded by tobacco companies) argue that transnational tobacco companies make use of deceptive health claims to market e-cigarettes to target young consumers and encourage them to smoke.

In a country where 8-9 lakh people die of tobacco related diseases every year, this trend is obviously problematic. Add to this the fact that sale of e-cigarettes isn’t regulated in India (except in Karnataka, Kerala and Punjab where they are banned under food and drug laws and regulations) and the problem becomes bigger.

Considering the rise in their sale and consumption in recent years (the Union health minister told the parliament in December 2015 that the import of e-cigarettes had risen by almost 100% between 2012-13 and 2015-16), it becomes essential to question the myths surrounding this smoking device.

Here we debunk the most popular myths associated with e-cigarettes/e-shishas:
1. E-Cigarette Smoke Doesn’t Have As Many Toxicants As Cigarettes

A study conducted by the Dutch health ministry found that although e-cigarettes have lower concentration of some cigarette-specific toxic chemical compounds (like tobacco-specific nitrosamines), e-cigarettes have their own toxicants (like polyols and aldehydes), that sometimes exist in higher concentrations than in cigarette smoke.
2. E-Cigarettes/E-Shishas Won’t Give Me  Cancer

If you are smoking a nicotine containing e-cigarettes or e-shisha, there is little respite for you. Nicotine by itself isn’t a carcinogen – but it does promote tumours and malignant diseases. After all, cigarettes have been around for a while and there is plenty of research that shows that nicotine, the chemical that drives people to smoking, is harmful for you.

Even non-nicotine e-cigarettes contain heavy metals. And prolonged use of even these e-cigarettes can lead to cancer. More research, however, needs to be conducted before we can directly correlate the amount of heavy metals consumed through e-cigarettes to cancer.

3. E-Cigarettes/E-Shishas Help In Quitting Smoking

This is another big myth. Nicotine in itself is considered highly addictive and can even lead you on to try other drugs. It’s not surprising to know then that the US’ National Institute On Drug Abuse has stated that ‘there is no conclusive scientific evidence on the effectiveness of e-cigarettes for long-term smoking cessation’.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) says that although there isn’t a clear association (chemically/biologically) between vaping and smoking, it also found that ‘use by minors who have never smoked at least doubles their chance of starting to smoke’.

Why is this myth out there then? Two Danish researchers reviewed 76 studies conducted on the content of the fluid/vapour of e-cigarettes and found ‘serious methodological problems’. “In 26 studies (34%), the authors had a conflict of interest. Most studies were funded or otherwise supported/influenced by manufacturers of ECs, but several authors had also been consultants for manufacturers of medicinal smoking cessation therapy,” the review says.
4. So You Mean To Say Go With E-Cigarettes With No Nicotine And Low Metal Content?

Maybe, but you will be doing that at your own risk. Metal content can vary across products and brands and you can try and choose ones which have low toxic substances. But how do you figure out if a company’s claims are true?

Take, for example, these three results from a laboratory analysis done by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA):

    The electronic cigarette cartridges that were labelled as containing no nicotine had low levels of nicotine present in all cartridges tested, except one.

    Three different electronic cigarette cartridges with the same label were tested and each cartridge emitted a markedly different amount of nicotine with each puff. The nicotine levels per puff ranged from 26.8 to 43.2 mcg nicotine/100 mL puff.

    One high-nicotine cartridge delivered twice as much nicotine to users when the vapour from that electronic cigarette brand was inhaled than was delivered by a sample of the nicotine inhalation product (used as a control) approved by FDA for use as a smoking cessation aid.

These results are from the US, which has some country-wide regulations for e-cigarettes at least. In India, where there are no guidelines or rules around them, the market remains almost completely unregulated. So, it is totally up to the consumer to test the veracity  of a company’s claims and make a decision!

5. How About Fruit Flavoured E-Cigarettes? Fruits Aren’t Harmful!

Until January 2014, there were close to 8,000 flavours of e-cigarettes available – but research on them remains scarce. Popcorn flavourants are, however, known to cause ‘excess rates of lung disease and lung-function abnormalities’. A study done specifically on cinnamon-flavoured e-cigarettes found that the flavourants are toxic for living cells.

Moreover, when it comes to perceptions, a study based on a 2014 survey done in the UK with 11-16-year-olds found that the perception of harmfulness of e-cigarettes was moderated by what flavour they came in. “Fruit and sweet flavours were perceived as more likely to be tried by young never smokers than adult smokers trying to quit,” the study says.

All things said, when tobacco companies are getting involved with vaping, one should always be a little cautious and do one’s own research – than take their claims at face value. These multinationals are known for their intense lobbying and secretive marketing that you as a consumer might not always be aware of.

When you hear ‘facts’ about e-cigarettes or e-shishas, beware of where they are coming from and how they were found.  Ultimately, it is your health that’s at risk. So practice exercising that extra caution before buying that e-cigarette and trusting your health with it!

Resource : https://www.youthkiawaaz.com/2017/08/5-popular-myths-about-e-cigarettes-and-e-shishas-busted/

Advertisement Young e-cigarette users more likely to become tobacco users says new study

 While results of a recent report published in the British Medical Journal showed that U.S. adult e-cigarette users were more likely than non-users to try to quit smoking (and succeed at quitting for at least three months), the devices remain a source of concern when it comes to young users, as a U.K. study published last week suggests that teenagers who have tried an e-cigarette are more likely to go on to smoke tobacco cigarettes.

Led by the University of Stirling along with researchers from the Unversities of St Andrews and Edinburgh, and ScotCen, the results mirror those found in eight previous US studies.

The team looked at pupils at four Scottish secondary schools aged between 11 and 18 years old, surveying the participants in 2015 and then again 12 months later.

 They found in the initial 2015 survey that among the 2,125 pupils who had never smoked a cigarette, 183 (8.6 per cent) said that they had tried an e-cigarette and 1,942 had not.

In the 2016 survey, 74 (40.4 per cent) of those who had tried an e-cigarette in the initial 2015 survey went on to smoke a cigarette in the following 12 months -- compared to only 249 (12.8 per cent) of young people who had not tried an e-cigarette.

The results remained statistically significant even after the team had taken into account other factors that influence smoking including smoking susceptibility, having friends or family members who smoke, age, sex, family affluence, ethnic group and school.

"Uniquely, we also found that e-cigarette use had a greater impact on the odds of cigarette experimentation in young never smokers who had a firm intention not to smoke and/or whose friends didn't smoke. Traditionally, this is the group of young people least likely to take up smoking," commented Dr Catherine Best, Research Fellow at the University of Stirling.

Sally Haw, Professor of Public and Population Health at Stirling, also added that, "The greater impact of e-cigarette use on young people thought to be at lower risk of starting smoking is of particular concern" and now recommends further research to understand better how experimenting with e-cigarettes may influence smoking attitudes.

The findings can be found published online in the British Medical Journal's Tobacco Control journal.

Resource : http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/young-e-cigarette-users-more-likely-to-become-tobacco-users-says-new-study-1.3526056

British American Tobacco investigated by Serious Fraud Office

UK tobacco firm British American Tobacco (BAT) says it is under official investigation by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over allegations it paid bribes in East Africa.

The allegations were first made in a BBC Panorama programme in 2015.

BAT said that it had been investigating the claims through external legal advisers and it had been co-operating with the SFO.

The firm said it also intended to co-operate with this formal investigation.

The SFO confirmed it was "investigating suspicions of corruption in the conduct of business by BAT plc, its subsidiaries and associated persons".

It asked those with "information relevant to this investigation, please contact the SFO through its secure and confidential reporting channel".

The Panorama programme alleged that BAT, whose brands include Dunhill and Pall Mall cigarettes, had made illegal payments to politicians and civil servants in East Africa.

The BBC spent five months investigating and was shown hundreds of secret documents purporting to show backhanders to various officials, including MPs and even people working for a rival company in East Africa.

BAT told Panorama at the time: "The truth is that we do not and will not tolerate corruption, no matter where it takes place."

Following the news of the official SFO investigation, BAT said in a statement: "As previously announced, we are investigating, through external legal advisers, allegations of misconduct.

"We have been co-operating with the Serious Fraud Office ("SFO") and British American Tobacco ("BAT") has been informed that the SFO has now opened a formal investigation. BAT intends to co-operate with that investigation."

Resource : http://www.bbc.com/news/business-40787784

Efforts to reduce smoking undermined by availability of cheap tobacco

The effectiveness of price increases as a deterrent to cut smoking is being undermined by the availability of cheap tobacco, including roll-your-own and cartons of factory-made cigarettes, according to new research published in the Journal Nicotine & Tobacco Research.

In the study, researchers at King's College London and the University of Bath analyzed data from over 6,000 smokers to look at the price UK adults paid for tobacco between 2002 and 2014. Their study compared buying tobacco from conventional outlets, such as supermarkets, off-licenses and convenience stores, with buying from informal sellers, including friends or duty-free sources.

The researchers showed that, by switching brands, smokers could easily and legally obtain tobacco in conventional stores at the same prices they would have paid in 2002. The price range comparing the cheapest and most expensive tobacco almost doubled over the 12 years.

In 2002 there was a 12 pence range between the cheapest and most expensive factory made cigarettes ; by 2014 this had increased to 23 pence. In 2014, the most expensive available pack of 20 factory-made cigarettes cost around £10.00, whereas the cheapest cost only around £5.33.

They argue that the widening gap between the cheapest and most expensive products is evidence of the tobacco industry introducing a wider variety of brands to cater to some smokers' declining budgets. Thus despite regular tax increases over this period, factory-made cigarettes only increased by an average of 10 pence per cigarette.

The study was also interested in differences between roll-your-own tobacco and factory-made cigarettes. Currently in the UK roll-your-own tobacco is taxed at a lower rate than factory-made cigarettes and considerably cheaper.

From 2002 - 2014, smokers using roll-your-own almost doubled, with its use particularly prevalent in younger smokers. The price increase in roll-your-own was even lower than that of factory-made cigarettes. By 2014, the cheapest roll-your-own tobacco could be purchased at around £1.63 for 10 grams, roughly equivalent to 20 cigarettes.


This study provides evidence that marked tax increases have not resulted in price increases large enough to necessarily motivate smokers of cheap products to quit.

Lead author, Dr Timea Partos of the Addictions Department at King's College London, explained: "Increasing tobacco prices is known to be one of the best deterrents to reduce smoking, but an increase in availability of cheaper products in conventional stores in response to this appears to be thwarting public health campaigns.

"Policy-makers need to focus on regulating tobacco prices so that the tobacco industry is not able to undermine tax increases by offering such a wide range of cigarette prices."

Co-author from the University of Bath's Tobacco Control Research Group, Dr Rosemary Hiscock added: "Our previous research suggests that tobacco companies are able to meet tax requirements and keep cheap products available by markedly increasing prices on premium brands (over-shifting) and thus under-shifting taxes to cheap brands. This pattern has now been observed in various countries."

The authors now suggest that the price of all types of tobacco should be equally high so that smokers are discouraged from simply switching tobacco products to reduce costs.

With disadvantaged smokers more likely to use cheap tobacco, and smoking rates significantly higher among poorer communities, its availability could also be contributing to the widening socio-economic disparities associated with smoking.

Given interest from other countries in raising tobacco levies it is hoped findings from this research can help inform tobacco control policies both in the UK and internationally.

Resource : http://www.news-medical.net/news/20170731/Efforts-to-reduce-smoking-undermined-by-availability-of-cheap-tobacco.aspx

Smoking linked to breast cancer?

A STATEMENT by the Department of Health (DoH) and the Philippine Cancer Society (PCS) says breast cancer is the most common of cancers in the Philippines, with 16 percent of the 50,000 diagnosed cases. (2010 Philippine Cancer Facts and Estimates).

In relation to the concern, recent findings have suggested a link between cigarette-smoking and breast cancer.

According to Reuters Health, a study was conducted last year saying that there is an increased chance of death if the patient is smoking cigarettes. The research focuses on the impact of the duration of smoking on women with this kind of tumor, and it is the first do so, according to the co-author of the study Dr. Masaaki Kawai.

“Among more than 800 women with breast cancer, those who had smoked for more than two decades had at least triple the odds of dying of any cause, or from breast cancer in particular, compared with women who never used cigarettes,” Reuters Health states.

•

Tobacco has its obvious effects, but despite this, cigarettes remain their reputation as strong marketable merchandise in the Philippines.

Furthermore, the likelihood of the youth replacing adult smokers is an increasing risk.

“The Philippines will continue to be Southeast Asia’s second largest tobacco consumers if young Filipinos are not stopped from smoking,” the New Vois Association of the Philippines (NVAP) warns.

•

TRIVIA PA MORE:

Quoting Dr. Arturo V. Rotor in his book, “Living With Folk Wisdom,” he says: “With all the empty plastic bottles around, you can prepare safe drinking water just by adding crushed seeds of malunggay. Fill up a liter size bottle with water coming from the top or if you are in the province, a deep well or spring.

“Add two malunggay seeds crushed by hand. Allow to set up for two to three hours or until the sediments have settled down. Slowly transfer the filtrate to another bottle for immediate or future use.”

•

Send your questions on anything and everything to Kuya Kim through my Twitter account @kuyakim_atienza using #AlaminKayKuyaKim.

Ating tuklasin ang mga bagay-bagay na di niyo pa alam. Walang ’di susuungin, lahat aalamin. Ito po si Kuya Kim, Matanglawin, only here in TEMPO. 

Resource : http://tempo.com.ph/2017/07/07/smoking-linked-to-breast-cancer/

Signs are that cigarette bans are working, says Cumbria health boss

Ten years ago smoking was the biggest public health issue facing Cumbria and it hasn’t gone away.

But the number of young people taking up the habit has dropped dramatically and experts believe the ban on smoking in pubs, clubs and workplaces has been key.

The county’s public health director, Colin Cox, goes as far as predicting the days of tobacco smoking are numbered, saying it is becoming less and less socially acceptable.

When it came into force across England a decade ago, the smoking ban was controversial legislation.

Those opposing it claimed it was a breach of human rights and predicted pubs and clubs would go out of business as punters would stop going out if they could no longer smoke inside.

But Mr Cox said those fears have proved unfounded and the actual result has been a reduction in smoking which he believes will continue until tobacco smoking is all but extinct in England.

Vaping may have taken over as an alternative but although he’d prefer people to quit completely, he believes it to be safer than tobacco – which he says is still the most harmful thing for your health.

However, despite the ban’s success, Mr Cox is not convinced that similar legislation can be used to tackle other public health issues – such as obesity – with quite the same level of success.

“It’s not quite as straightforward. Food is more complicated. Smoking is easy in a way because the answer is clear. But we all need to eat so the message inevitably becomes more complicated.

“Things like introducing the sugar tax will help but it is a much more complicated issue to legislate,” he said.

When the smoking ban came into force, Mr Cox was working in Manchester. He moved to Cumbria in 2014.

He believes the legislation was without doubt the right thing to do. “It was something that we’d been campaigning for for a long time. It was one of those where you have a campaign going on for a long time, then public opinion catches up and overtakes it,” he said.

“There were two main things for me. The main scientific reason was about passive smoking in pubs, restaurants and other public places.

“We’d got to a point where, in about 1993, health and safety rules meant it was being banned in most offices. It became unacceptable and people would have been horrified if someone had lit up in the middle of the office, yet it was still accepted in pubs and clubs, despite the fact that most of the population didn’t smoke. Smoking was still seen as normal.

“Because of this smoking was still part of the culture. Particularly for young people coming into the pub culture for the first time, they may not have smoked before but it was easy to get into.

“Legislation can really change culture. If you think back to when a lot of us were younger, nobody thought twice about drink driving. Now it is very much frowned upon.”

Mr Cox, director of public health at Cumbria County Council, said Cumbria still has higher than average numbers of hospital admissions attributable to smoking, though smoking-related deaths are similar to those across the rest of England. However, it is the younger generations that he feels are really benefiting 10 years on from the ban.

National figures show that the number of 15-year-olds who smoke has dropped from about 20 per cent to eight per cent in the last 12 years and locally they have also seen it drop.

“Even in the last five years, both nationally and here in Cumbria, it is estimated that the smoking prevalence has dropped from 20 to 15 per cent. It’s a real success story,” he said.

“The decline among young people has been particularly dramatic. I think a chunk of that is to do with the ban. It has changed the culture and stopped people from taking up smoking. There has also been the rise in vaping but that’s more recent.”

Mr Cox believes the ban’s success has paved the way for further legislation – such as the introduction of plain packaging and removing cigarettes sales points from public view – which is gradually phasing out tobacco use.

“Packaging is about the only form of advertising that tobacco companies had left and they have used it very effectively,” he said.

“When you see the rate that smoking has declined, with only eight per cent of 15-year-olds now smoking, we would hope these people wouldn’t take it up later on as it’s now very much a minority pastime.”

He said tobacco companies are now moving their attention to vaping in line with the declining demand for traditional cigarettes.

“My guess is that, in this country at least, we will get to a point where smoking leaf tobacco in cigarettes is very rare. It may be that people are still using other nicotine delivery systems but not cigarettes. In a way that smoking a pipe still exists but it’s very, very niche,” he said.

Asked whether the ban could be extended much further, he said it was doubtful. “There’s a couple of things that have happened recently. Now smoking isn’t allowed in cars where children are present which is a good thing but is quite difficult to enforce.

"I think that’s probably about as far as these bans can go.

“Hospitals are another issue. I think all hospitals grounds should be smoke-free and they are in theory but it’s not really enforced. There is probably a bit more that can be done there.

Smoking in pubs is an alien concept to many younger drinkers, who have grown up without it being the norm.

Edith Taylor, who has run the Lion and Lamb in Wigton with partner David Browbank for 15 years, said that although they lost a few customers in the early days, they have adapted.

She said: “I wouldn’t say it’s an issue for us now. People are used to it. They just go outside automatically now.

“When it first happened we lost a few. I personally think it would have been better to allow pubs to have a room where people could go to smoke, but it’s too late for that now.

“Ten years is a long time and I don’t think people smoke as much these days. It’s more these vapes, that’s the trend

 “Younger people have grown up with it like this. This is all they’ve known. They don’t even realise you could smoke in pubs.”

She said she was not against smoking, but did feel there was less risk to staff now it was outside.

She added that the atmosphere in pubs is now a lot clearer and they don’t have to redecorate as often.

Public health director Colin Cox said pubs locally do respect the ban and have adapted well.

It is policed by district councils’ environmental health departments, and he is not aware of any recent cases where pubs in Cumbria have had legal action taken against them as a result. He firmly believes a culture change has come about, and there would be no public support for a return to smoking in pubs.


“There are also more specialised places where regulations might be worth thinking about. For example, mental health in-patient units do allow people to smoke outdoors but would moving to vaping be an option?

“There is talk about stopping people smoking in highly populated streets or public places but I’m not sure we are there yet.”

He stressed that although smoking is in decline, it does still happen and he would urge those who do to access local stop-smoking services, which are still available, via community pharmacies.

“The message is that smoking is still one of the most harmful things you can do to your health. If you do not smoke, do not start, and if you do smoke, stop if you can or if you can’t, switch to vaping.

“We do not know fully about the safety of vaping but I can’t see it ever being found to be less safe than smoking,” he said.

As for the pub trade, Mr Cox does not believe they have suffered because of the ban.

“I think pubs have just adapted. There’s no doubt that there has been a declining trend but that had been going on for years, before the smoking legislation changed.

“When you look at graphs you can’t really see where the smoking ban came in. You get people saying that pubs lost lots of business, but they didn’t,” he added.

Resource :http://www.newsandstar.co.uk/lifestyle/features/article/Signs-are-that-cigarette-bans-are-working-says-Cumbria-health-boss-c5afd37b-73bc-41ef-a8a7-8f0d75adbb11-ds

No buying tobacco under the age of 21, Oregon lawmakers decide

Oregonians under the age of 21 will not be able to buy cigarettes come Jan. 1.

Oregon is about to become the third state in the nation to raise the age for buying tobacco products, following a 39-to-20 vote in the Oregon House on Thursday. The Senate passed the measure in March, 19 to 8.

Senate Bill 754 was scheduled to return to the Senate late Thursday for expected concurrence because the House amended the bill to make it clear that possessing tobacco isn’t illegal for those under 21.

Gov. Kate Brown is all in on anti-smoking laws and is expected to sign the bill with some relish.

Only California and Hawaii have raised the age. The New Jersey Legislature passed a bill, but Gov. Chris Christie vetoed it.

The purpose is to get young adults past the age where nicotine addiction takes hold, lawmakers said, citing that 95 percent of lifelong smokers start before the age of 21.

Smoking damages the prefrontal cortex, otherwise know as the higher brain, Rep. Greg Smith, R-Heppner, said.

“The prefrontal cortex is the part of your brain that influences personality, decision making, impulses, attention and problem solving,” he said. “If a youth starts smoking before the age of 25, this habit becomes an addiction. By the age of 25, this addiction is cemented in the brain and it becomes very difficult -- almost impossible -- to quit.”

Raising the age cuts the pipeline of tobacco and flavored e-cigarettes into high school populations where many seniors turn 18, advocates said.

Each year, roughly 1,800 Oregon kids become smokers, according to bill proponent, the American Cancer Society.

House minority leader Rep. Mike McLane, R-Powell Butte, agreed with the measure’s promoters that tobacco is unhealthy, but he said it shouldn’t be regulated because it doesn’t impair users like marijuana or alcohol.

“At a certain point you’ve got to decide: where’s the line? I draw it at impairment,” he said.

Rep. Paul Evans, D-Monmouth, said it’s unfair to 18-year-olds who are legally adults who can get married, sign contracts, join the military and vote -- but will not have the liberty to choose whether to smoke.

“We can’t legislate everything,” he said.

Sen. Elizabeth Steiner, D-Beaverton, who’s a family physician pushed the bill in the Senate.

The bill “will prevent young people from a lifetime of tobacco and e-cigarette addiction,” she said. “If signed by the governor, this new law will go a long way to preventing cancer as well as heart and lung disease.”

© 2017 KGW-TV

Resource : http://www.kgw.com/news/politics/no-buying-tobacco-under-the-age-of-21-oregon-lawmakers-decide/454817794

State may restrict e-cigarette use in all public venues

By Nakeem Grant

The State Assembly passed legislation on June 20 to eliminate the use of e-cigarettes in public places where combustible cigarettes cannot be used. The bill, which was already passed by the State Senate, is currently awaiting the approval by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. If Cuomo signs it, it will be added to the state Clean Indoor Air Act, which prohibits smoking in public venues.

“Adding e-cigarettes to our smoke-free law is an important, historic step forward to protect the lives and the health of all New Yorkers,” said Julie Hart, the government relations director for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.

Assemblyman Michael Montesano, a Republican from Glen Head, said that certain people do not want the state to limit the use of e-cigarettes because they use them to quit regular smoking. “That’s laudable,” he said, “but when it comes to being in a public place, or you’re in a restaurant, you can’t subject people to your habits. That’s really what this bill is all about.”

Montesano also said that the state has long considered the public when deciding matters such as this. “Any law that we pass always has an impact on someone else, and we do whatever we can to satisfy the best interests of the general public,” he said.

The use of e-cigarettes among children has become more popular in recent years. According to Carol Meschkow, of the State Department of Health, e-cigarettes are the most commonly used nicotine products for middle and high school students. “We are extremely concerned that all the work that was done to prevent smoking has been undermined by e-cigarettes,” she said. “If if’s preventable, every effort that we can take is really important.”

She added that the Clean Indoor Air Act, along with health educators and local organizations, have all contributed to changing the public’s attitude toward of smoking. And while she has seen a “promising” trend in which people are becoming more aware of the cons of e-cigarettes and other tobacco products, Meschkow is still concerned about their use among youth. “The younger the age, the stronger the addiction,” she said. “That’s what we’re really afraid of.”

Montesano said that this is where the issue lies. “It came out as a product originally to help people stop smoking,” he said. “Unfortunately, [e-cigarettes] got into the wrong hands, and it can be habit-forming for young children. It could give them an addiction, or it could be the gateway to regular cigarettes and so on.”

The Tobacco Coalition of Long Island reported that tobacco products are responsible for the preventable deaths of 25,400 people in New York each year.

“Every life that we lose to tobacco products, we have no idea what that person could have been capable of,” said Meschkow, who also works as a tobacco coalition coordinator. “Whenever a life is cut short, we all suffer.”

Resource : http://www.liherald.com/stories/state-may-restrict-e-cigarette-use-in-all-public-venues,93479

France to raise price of cigarettes in bid to stub out national nicotine habit

Health minister Agnes Buzyn hopes prohibitively high tobacco costs will stop smokers indulging and boost public health

France will raise the price of cigarettes to 10 euros (£8.79) a pack within three years, the health minister said on Thursday, confirming a strategy that will push tobacco costs to among the highest in Europe.

At present, a packet of 20 cigarettes costs roughly seven euros (£6.15) in France, well below the roughly 10 euros charged in Britain and Ireland.

“France is one of the slowest learners in the world on smoking,” the minister, Agnes Buzyn, said. “Big price rises will be needed to have an impact on public health.”

Buzyn told RTL radio station that smoking rates in Britain had dropped from around 30 percent to 20 percent over the past decade as the government pursued a policy of hefty price hikes, while the smoking rate was still around 30 percent in France.

The new government of centrist President Emmanuel Macron has announced several high-profile healthcare targets including the extension of compulsory vaccination, fuller public cover of the costs of dental care and eye glasses, and tobacco tax hikes. 

Resource : http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/france-smoking-cigarette-price-rise-public-health-tobacco-agnes-buzyn-a7827216.html

Sin tax good for economy, say experts in Oman

Muscat: Residents may have to pay up to double the price for unhealthy products after a ‘sin tax’ kicks in, experts say, but the boost to health and the economy will be worth it.

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The new levy on items such as cigarettes, certain beverages and energy drinks will be 100 per cent of the retail price and all GCC members states have agreed to introduce it, according to global experts.

Analysts in Oman say the new prices could be in place as early as the year end.

That means an OMR1.2 pack of cigarettes could then cost up to OMR2.4 – a move welcomed by health ministry officials and economists alike.

Under the GCC excise framework agreement, all GCC member states have committed to introducing excise tax by the end of 2017.

According to the framework published in the Saudi official Gazette recently, beverages, energy drinks and tobacco will be taxed at 100 per cent while a 50 per cent tax will be levied on soft drinks.

“Excise tax is expected to be imposed on the importation and production of soft drinks, energy drinks and tobacco across the GCC,” Adrienne D’ Rose, senior manager, Indirect Tax at Deloitte said.

“Although levied at import or manufacture, the rates to be applied are expected to be primarily based on the retail sales price (RSP) of the products, and set at a rate of 50 per cent for soft drinks and 100 per cent for energy drinks and tobacco.

There has been no published guidance on how the RSP will be determined at this stage.” In the UAE it is expected that excise will be implemented in Q4 2017.

Saudi Arabia has already applied it. The GCC framework also includes a Value Added Tax (VAT) regime across all states which is expected to begin in 2018.

Experts believe VAT will be calculated on the excise inclusive value of the goods – meaning yet another hike. Where the VAT exclusive retail sales price for a can of cola is 100bs, the excise should be 50bs, resulting in an excise inclusive cost of 150 bs, where the excise tax is fully passed down the supply chain.

Once introduced, VAT should be payable in addition at 5%, resulting in a final price to the customer of 157.5bs, Rose explained. Costs of a pack of cigarette that costs OMR1 will go higher than OMR2 while energy drinks that cost nearly 500bs will cost more than OMR 1 once these taxes are applied.

This however assumes that the cost of excise tax is fully passed down the supply chain but in practice some parties in the supply chain may elect to absorb some of the excise cost.

“The introduction of excise is expected to have broader impacts on consumer behaviour, the local market and regional supply chains,” she said. “We see that cost of tobacco and other such products are very low in GCC countries when compared to European countries.

The excise tax is certainly good for the economy as it will help increase government revenue. Consumption may be affected but this will contain habits of consuming harmful products especially amongst the younger population,” Fabio Scacciavillani.

Chief Economist at Oman Investment Fund said. “Moreover, if people instead use the money spent on tobacco on local products and services like a restaurant, it will be a substitute for foreign demand, which is again good for the local economy.”

According to health department officials, countries that had previously raised taxes on tobacco have been able to reduce significantly the impact of tobacco use.

“We hope that the price of a pack [of cigarettes] will be higher, and rise to a level that can help reduce consumption (significantly),” Dr Jawad al Lawati senior consultant and rapporteur of the National Tobacco Control Committee at the Ministry of Health said.

Al Lawati said that since many people who use tobacco are poor and are more prone to diseases, higher costs of smoking would deter them from this bad habit.

“They spend a large part of their income on tobacco rather than on their families,” he stated. Residents and doctors have both welcomed the move. “Very happy to hear this is coming soon. We have been waiting for such a law.

This will make it harder for people especially schoolchildren to get. Also, smoking must be restricted to certain places.

We can’t have families and children be subjected to passive smoking. It’s an unfriendly atmosphere.

Glad to hear this coming into effect this year,” Maaz Firdous, Consultant at Al Iskaan Engineering said. Dr Pradeep Maheshwari, an Internal Medicine specialist at the Atlas Hospital, said: “That’s a good sign. It reduces the consumption of tobacco products.

People will think twice before spending more on tobacco.

It would be a welcome step in addition to the government banning smoking in public places and banning ads,” he added.

“Taxes should be increased. The public will not be able to easily buy these products and the use may decrease.”

Resource : http://timesofoman.com/article/112130/Oman/Sin-tax-good-for-economy-say-experts-in-Oman

Selected Tobacco To Launch New Sizes of Atabey & Byron at IPCPR 2017

United Cigar Group made an announcement that they are extending two of their most popular ultra-premium cigar blends. Receiving these extensions are the Atabey and Byron brands, both made in Costa Rica and featuring upscale blends of high-end tobacco designed to appeal to smokers who enjoy and appreciate the finest tobaccos. The brands represent the most exclusive offerings in the extensive United Cigar Group portfolio and this announcement is expected to cause significant excitement among fans of both brands.

The Atabey line currently features four sizes, and that quantity will more than double with this introduction of five new shapes. The new shapes are Duendes (Torpedo 6 x 54), Spiritus (7 1/2 x 40), Misticos (6 3/4 x 56), Dioses (8 x 50) & Benditos (7 ¼ x 58). The new sizes will be on display at the 2017 IPCPR Show and will be ready to ship in 2018 after five years of carefully planned aging is complete.

“This is a complicated time in the cigar industry to introduce a line extension but we are overly excited to showcase these Atabey vitolas that will be ready for the shelves soon,” said Oliver Nivaud, Director of Sales at United Cigars. “Retailers and cigar enthusiasts have been overly receptive and we are completely humbled by their support.”

The extensions to the Byron brand are based around new packaging that places these exclusive cigars in packaging that lives up to their reputation. Nelson Alfonso of Selected Tobacco has artfully packed the Byron 19th Century Grand Poemas (6 x 56) and Byron 20th Century Habaneros (6 x 56) in beautiful 25 count Limited Edition Humidors. Each humidor is filled with cigars that have been aging since 2012, and only 200 humidors filled with each vitola will be produced this year. The cigars represent a unique smoking experience for true cigar enthusiasts and the humidors are expected to become sought-after collector’s items among the brand’s followers due to their limited production. Along with the Byron 21st Century Elegantes (6 1/8 x 55), the Byron Grand Poemas and Habaneros will be available at the 2017 IPCPR Show in Las Vegas, NV.

United Cigar Group works with top cigar manufacturers throughout the world in order to create unique cigars, built exclusively for the premium cigar retailer. The brands of United Cigar Group are all Exclusive Cigar Products that were in demand but unavailable… so they were created.

 Resource : http://thecigarauthority.com/selected-tobacco-launch-new-sizes-atabey-byron/

Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! Just Not Tobacco

If the leaders of the Massachusetts legislature taxed tobacco cigarettes the way they are planning to tax marijuana, then the price of cigarettes would drop like a dozen recently-legalized homegrown pot plants tossed from a rooftop garden. That’s because the Bay State power-brokers use their taxing powers against tobacco with the intent of reducing its usage. The draconian approach incentivizes people to either quit smoking or never to start at all. That’s the point of Massachusetts tobacco taxation.

The total tax on cigarettes is quite astonishing. In 2009, the federal government upped its excise tax on cigarettes to a whopping $1.01 per pack. Not to be outdone, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts hiked its excise tax to an eye-popping $3.51 in 2013, effectively doubling the price consumers paid for cigarettes, compared to low-tax states. At that time, our state tax levy was second in the nation. Now we have slipped to fourth behind New York, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. How long before liberal lawmakers start demanding another tax hike, so we can return to the peak of the taxing pyramid?

Taking the time-honored idea of “sin taxes” to its extreme, Massachusetts forces its citizens to pay a sales tax on tobacco, as well. Conveniently upped 25 percent only a couple of years before the tobacco tax increase, the sales tax hike — like the cigarette tax — passed the Democrat-dominated legislature during the Governor Deval Patrick administration. The fact that such sales tax hikes are regressive forms of taxation that fall hardest on working families never seems to bother liberal “advocacy” groups. And taxes on cigarettes fall into the most regressive category, because working folks earning less than $60,000 a year are more than twice as likely to smoke as high income earners. So much for empty Democrat rhetoric about protecting working families from the “one percent.”

Working smokers must pay a $3.51 state excise tax, a $1.01 federal tax, and then state government says:  Supersize me — pay the state’s 6.25 percent sales tax, not just on the retail value of the cigarettes, but also on the heavy taxes previously added to the cigarettes. With all that taxation, the government more than doubles the real cost of a pack of cigarettes.

In Massachusetts, citizen-smokers pay taxes upon taxes upon taxes.

Compare those taxes to the kid-glove treatment the liberals in the legislature are intent on giving marijuana users. While the price of tobacco cigarettes vaults twice as high due to the tax burden, the Bay State insiders are wrestling with whether to place a favorable 12 percent or a moderate 28 percent levy on smoking dope. And unlike their excessive triple taxation upon tobacco, the legislature wraps the state sales tax into — rather than adding it onto — the marijuana tax rate. And there is no federal tax at all on outlawed marijuana.

Tobacco enthusiasts would jump with delight at any of those deals. But not the pot sympathizers in the legislature. No, they whine about the weight of a 28 percent tax on pot smokers, while never giving a second thought about the discriminatory burdens placed on tobacco smokers.

But let’s not forget:  State government actually wants to discourage tobacco smoking through a punitive level of taxation. Marijuana smoking? Not so much.

But, the liberals sputter, the voters approved a referendum that legalized recreational marijuana with the minuscule tax. Of course, these are the same big government types who continue to ignore a 2000 referendum that rolled back the income tax back to its historic five percent rate.

Seventeen years ago, Massachusetts citizens favored the income tax rollback with voter approval exceeding 56 percent. Despite this majority, the Democrats in the legislature still refuse to complete that tax rollback. Meanwhile in 2016, a lesser majority of more than 53 percent voted in favor of the marijuana referendum. When it comes to marijuana, these same legislators suddenly discover their obligation to follow the wishes of the voters. 

If the will of the voters means that much, then surely those Democrats will add the income tax rollback to the marijuana bill. But please don’t try to hold in that pot smoke for too long waiting for the legislature to act on income tax relief.


In addition to all its tobacco taxes, the state government assigns bureaucrats to set higher minimum prices for cigarettes, fearing that some enterprising small business person may actually want to use tobacco products as a “loss leader” to attract customers.”No such competition allowed” orders the bureaucracy; better that Massachusetts mom-and-pop shops lose business to New Hampshire, where much lower tobacco taxes and prices attract constant cross-border customers.

Effective June 1, 2017, the bureaucrats set the “presumptive minimum retail prices” for both packs and cartons of cigarettes. This is Massachusetts, so remember:  Deval Patrick’s 6.25 percent sales tax is levied on top of the minimum price fixing. Not only that, but the under-burdened bureaucracy has plenty of spare time to fix separate prices for larger “chain” stores and for “non-chain” or mom-and-pop retailers. Marlboro men are permitted to buy a pack for $10.22 at non-chains versus $10.07 at chain stores. If you’d “rather fight than switch,” you can shell out $119.44 for a carton of Tareytons at mom-and-pop shops, or pony up $117.69 at the big retailers. At those prices, you might rather switch to New Hampshire stores. As the saying goes, “you’ve come a long way, baby,” so the Massachusetts bureaucracy sets the per-pack price of Virginia Slims at between $10.56 and $10.72. Who says Massachusetts is pro-choice? Not when it comes to tobacco prices and products, that’s for sure.

Should you be feeling a tad regal or just plain Anglophile, you might be tempted to purchase a pack of English Ovals or Benson & Hedges Kings. Those will set you back $12.42 a pack or $124.15 a carton at independent retailers. Can you imagine how our colonial forefathers would have reacted to such British government taxation and price fixing? Why they may even have plotted a Boston Tobacco Party that ignited a revolution against the tyranny of English kings!

Today, the elite liberal Democrat leaders of the Massachusetts Senate and House have no such outbursts to fear. Secreted off in their air-conditioned chambers, they collude at establishing the tax rate for marijuana. In days of yore, such shenanigans took place in what were popularly referred to as “smoke-filled rooms.” That smoke was presumed to waft from cigars, once a much lower taxed and popular recreational habit associated with political big shots of all stripes. Considering how much less they want to tax marijuana than tobacco, makes you wonder:  What exactly they are smoking these days? 

Resource :   http://newbostonpost.com/2017/07/03/smoke-smoke-smoke-just-not-tobacco/

Police: Anchorage store clerk charged after firing weapon at cigarette carton thief

A tobacco store clerk faces two criminal charges for firing a gun at a thief who ran out of the store with a carton of cigarettes Wednesday evening, according to Anchorage police.

Ebenie Rafael Andujar, 22, has been charged with reckless endangerment and "discharging a firearm," the Anchorage Police Department said.

Officers responded to Smoker's Choice — located at the south end of a small strip mall near Minnesota Drive and Spenard Road — shortly before 7 p.m. Wednesday for the report of a theft with a shot fired.

A man entered the store and then ran out with the cigarettes without paying, police said.

"An employee fired one shot after the suspect," APD spokeswoman Renee Oistad said. "There is no indication that the suspect was armed and no indication that anyone was injured."

Online court records do not yet show the charges against Andujar.

While the store clerk faces a criminal penalty, the cigarette snatcher hasn't been caught.

Police describe the suspect as a skinny white man about 5 feet, 8-10 inches tall. He has dirty blond hair and "scruffy facial hair." He was last seen wearing a white zippered hoodie with black sleeves and a black tank top underneath, khaki cargo shorts and white tennis shoes.

Anyone with information about the suspect is asked to call police at 907-786-8900.

Resource : https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/crime-courts/2017/06/29/police-anchorage-smoke-shop-clerk-charged-with-firing-weapon-at-cigarette-carton-thief/

Twelve reasons once and for all to stop Smoking

Tobacco causes great harm to the health and psyche.

We all know that Smoking is harmful, and the effect of cigarette smoke and nicotine on the body is very negative, but there is also the issue of dependence on Smoking — first psychological, then physiological. Specialists years looking for methods to combat this habit.

Appeared Smoking a long time ago: more old frescoes in Hindu temples depicting saints who smoked the smoke of aromatic plants with special tubes. Such pipes were found during archaeological excavations in Egypt. In one of his writings, Herodotus noted that the Scythians have a bad habit of inhaling the smoke of burned plants. The same can be read in ancient Chinese literature.

Smoke inhalation of psychoactive plants, for example, the peoples of Eurasia were used for conducting rituals. But widespread Smoking among the bulk of the people at that time were not. The first mention of tobacco was found in Central America over a Millennium before our era.

Doctors used tobacco as a painkiller. Tobacco also needed for conducting religious rituals with smoke inhalation. Native Americans believed, for example, that when a person inhales tobacco, his soul communicates with spirits. In South America it was popular cigars from whole leaf tobacco.


When the natives gave Columbus tobacco leaves, he just threw them out, not appreciating the gift. However, at the end of the sixteenth century Smoking became a popular habit, and began the first fight with him. In Russia in the VII century during the reign of smokers were punished with sticks. Humanity began to understand that tobacco causes great harm to the health and psyche. What are the reasons you can call today to quit Smoking?

1) One bundle of cigarettes smoked per day, according to the degree of harmful effects on the body is equivalent to the radiation of 500 x-rays per year.

2) Smokers suffer from cancer, coronary heart disease and chronic obstructive bronchitis three times more often than nonsmokers.

3) Nicotine can have damaging effects on the brain, the liver, and gonads.

4) the heart rate is higher in smoker than non-smoker, so his heart will wear out faster.

5) tobacco tar contains carcinogenic in very high concentrations. Scientists conducted an experiment: put the tobacco tar rabbit ear for some time, after which the animal appeared the tumor.

6) Cough, unpleasant taste in the mouth, vomiting or nausea, dizziness for those who are beginning to smoke — not the most pleasant symptoms.

7) after a few years of habitual Smoking appears morning cough with phlegm, hoarseness, yellow teeth, and after thirty years of age, the skin begins to become loose, the person looks older than their peers.

8) Smoking is harmful both to the smoker and people around, especially dangerous for children, can cause they have asthma.

9) women who smoke often climax occurs ahead of time.

10) cigarette Smoke reduces the amount of good cholesterol that protects against cardiovascular disease.

11) Many cases of impotence in men associated with dangers of Smoking or its consequences.

12) When Smoking in day a pack of cigarettes, a person breathes air that is polluted to 1,000 times more than allowed by health standards.

Resource: http://micetimes.asia/twelve-reasons-once-and-for-all-to-stop-smoking/

Vaping, a gateway to cigarette smoking

E-cigarettes may harm public health and ultimately increase the burden of cancer if their use contributes to more cigarette smoking among youth.          
                         E-cigarettes may harm public health and ultimately increase the burden of cancer if their use contributes to more cigarette smoking among youth. A new collaborative Dartmouth study led by Samir, Soneji and James Sargent demonstrates that this potential harm should be taken very seriously.


The study focused on an important and controversial question: Does e-cigarette use increase the risk of future cigarette smoking among adolescents and young adults? The team conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of published studies that began with non-smoking youths and asked whether initial e-cigarettes use increased the risk they would subsequently transition to smoking cigarettes.

To rule out the possibility that e-cigarette users were simply higher risk youths, the analyses adjusted for known risk factors for cigarette smoking (like having a friend that smokes). The results showed strong and consistent evidence of greater risk between initial e-cigarette use and subsequent cigarette smoking initiation, regardless of how initiation was defined and net other factors that predict cigarette smoking.


The studies did not address why e-cigarette use increases risk of transitioning to cigarettes. The reason could be that e-cigarettes mimic smoking behaviour through similar involvement of hand-to-mouth movements, or puffing and exhalation. E-cigarette aerosol also contains nicotine, so use of these devices could enhance exposure and eventual addiction to this substance.

"The finding is very consistent across studies. That along with the strength of the association makes it probable that e-cigarette use is one cause of cigarette smoking," said Sargent. "E-cigarette use could affect population trends in youth smoking if use becomes more common, and that is the big public health concern."

"In addition to the currently enacted age restrictions on in-store sales, regulatory actions to limit e-cigarette use could include restrictions on advertising campaigns that may be viewed by adolescents, flavour restrictions for e-cigarettes that exclude fruit and candy flavours, strict standards for reporting actual nicotine content in e-liquid, and requirements for strict age verification for online and retail sales of these products" suggested Soneji.

Until more effective regulatory actions are taken, the team will continue to evaluate the excess risk posed by e-cigarette use for cigarette smoking with newer generations of e-cigarettes.

The findings will be published in an upcoming issue of JAMA Pediatrics. 

Resource : http://health.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/diagnostics/vaping-a-gateway-to-cigarette-smoking/59384333

Sheffield smokers needed to take part in university's e-cigarette study

A Sheffield university is looking for smokers trying to give up the habit to take part in a study. Researchers at Sheffield Hallam University need more than 250 recruits to help them look at the benefits and risks of using e-cigarettes to stop smoking. Successful applicants will have their progress monitored for six months. The research team will measure the participants’ cholesterol levels, their nicotine dependence as well as the amount of carbon monoxide in their breath and they will also assess the functioning of the small arteries and veins. To take part in the study, participants must be willing to give up smoking and be prepared to follow their assigned programme. They will be asked to attend four assessment sessions at the University's Collegiate campus during the six-month period. Smokers that are pregnant, are expecting to have surgery or have insulin-controlled diabetes, will not be considered for the study. E-cigarette participants will be provided with free supplies for three months, an e-cigarette starting kit and regular behavioural change support by the research team. Participants using the stop smoking services will receive the cost of a three-month NHS prescription certificate, irrespective of whether they currently pay for their prescriptions.


Dr Markos Klonizakis, who is leading the study, said: "Everyone is aware that smoking is bad for your health and is one of the main causes of cardiovascular disease. "Cigarette smoke contains about 9,000 different chemicals and that's why smokers should be encouraged to stop, not just for their own benefit but for the benefit of their families and the public purse. "Around 2.8 million people in the UK are using e-cigarettes as way of stopping smoking or as an alternative to traditional smoking but our knowledge of their effects on the small veins and arteries of regular smokers is largely unknown. "Our study will aim to bridge this knowledge gap, by providing unbiased, well-supported evidence."



The research is funded by Heart Research UK. To take part call Gareth Jones on 0114 225 4312 or e-mail HeartResearch@shu.ac.uk.

Resource :http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/health/sheffield-smokers-needed-to-take-part-in-university-s-e-cigarette-study-1-8568325

Heat-not-burn’ cigarettes still release cancer-causing chemicals

The smoke released by this “heat-not-burn” cigarette had 84% of the nicotine found in traditional cigarettes, researchers report in JAMA Internal Medicine.

NEW YORK – A new type of “heat-not-burn” cigarette releases some of the same cancer-causing chemicals found in traditional cigarette smoke, a recent experiment suggests.

Researchers analysed the chemical compounds and nicotine in smoke from traditional cigarettes and from the new devices, which are designed to heat disposable tobacco sticks and give users the taste of tobacco without the smoke or ash.

The smoke released by this “heat-not-burn” cigarette had 84% of the nicotine found in traditional cigarettes, researchers report in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Heat-not-burn cigarettes also released chemicals linked to cancer including carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

The research team was surprised to find that heat-not-burn cigarettes “released some of these chemicals in much higher concentrations that conventional cigarettes,” said lead study author Dr Reto Auer of the University of Bern in Switzerland.

“We need more studies to find out about the health consequences” of smoking heat-not-burn cigarettes, Auer said by email.

“However, there is no safe minimum limit for some of the chemicals” in heat-not-burn cigarette smoke, Auer added, “and some of these chemicals may contribute to the high mortality rate of smokers.”

To see how heat-not-burn cigarettes compared to conventional cigarettes in terms of chemicals released, Auer and colleagues analysed the smoke from Lucky Strike Blue Lights and the newer alternative tobacco devices using a smoking device developed to capture fumes from traditional and electronic cigarettes.

They looked at the contents of the I-Quit-Ordinary Smoking (IQOS) product from Philip Morris International with an IQOS holder, IQOS pocket charger, Marlboro HeatSticks regular and Heets.

While more studies are needed to determine the long-term health effects of heat-not-burn cigarettes, their use should be restricted until more is known about them, Auer argues.

“Harmful chemicals were present in IQOS smoke, though in lower concentrations, on average,” Auer said. “We need to conduct more studies to find out whether IQOS are safer for users or bystanders.”

Based on their findings, the authors conclude that heated tobacco products should fall under the same indoor smoking bans in place for conventional cigarettes to prevent bystanders from breathing the fumes.

That’s because the new tobacco products threaten the progress that has been made on decreasing the harms of second-hand smoke, because existing bans may not apply to heat-not-burn cigarettes, Dr Mitchell Katz, deputy editor of JAMA Internal Medicine wrote in an editor’s note accompanying the study.

“There is concern that heat-not-burn tobacco will skirt local ordinances that prevent smoking in public areas,” Katz, director of the Los Angeles County Health Agency, said by email.

“This would harm public health by eroding social norms about the use of tobacco,” Katz added. “In addition, the article demonstrates that heat-not-burn products release carcinogens, so the use of these products in public space would harm the health of both the user and those around the user.”

NEW YORK – A new type of “heat-not-burn” cigarette releases some of the same cancer-causing chemicals found in traditional cigarette smoke, a recent experiment suggests.

Researchers analysed the chemical compounds and nicotine in smoke from traditional cigarettes and from the new devices, which are designed to heat disposable tobacco sticks and give users the taste of tobacco without the smoke or ash.

The smoke released by this “heat-not-burn” cigarette had 84% of the nicotine found in traditional cigarettes, researchers report in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Heat-not-burn cigarettes also released chemicals linked to cancer including carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

The research team was surprised to find that heat-not-burn cigarettes “released some of these chemicals in much higher concentrations that conventional cigarettes,” said lead study author Dr Reto Auer of the University of Bern in Switzerland.

“We need more studies to find out about the health consequences” of smoking heat-not-burn cigarettes, Auer said by email.

“However, there is no safe minimum limit for some of the chemicals” in heat-not-burn cigarette smoke, Auer added, “and some of these chemicals may contribute to the high mortality rate of smokers.”

To see how heat-not-burn cigarettes compared to conventional cigarettes in terms of chemicals released, Auer and colleagues analysed the smoke from Lucky Strike Blue Lights and the newer alternative tobacco devices using a smoking device developed to capture fumes from traditional and electronic cigarettes.

They looked at the contents of the I-Quit-Ordinary Smoking (IQOS) product from Philip Morris International with an IQOS holder, IQOS pocket charger, Marlboro HeatSticks regular and Heets.

While more studies are needed to determine the long-term health effects of heat-not-burn cigarettes, their use should be restricted until more is known about them, Auer argues.

“Harmful chemicals were present in IQOS smoke, though in lower concentrations, on average,” Auer said. “We need to conduct more studies to find out whether IQOS are safer for users or bystanders.”

Based on their findings, the authors conclude that heated tobacco products should fall under the same indoor smoking bans in place for conventional cigarettes to prevent bystanders from breathing the fumes.

That’s because the new tobacco products threaten the progress that has been made on decreasing the harms of second-hand smoke, because existing bans may not apply to heat-not-burn cigarettes, Dr Mitchell Katz, deputy editor of JAMA Internal Medicine wrote in an editor’s note accompanying the study.

“There is concern that heat-not-burn tobacco will skirt local ordinances that prevent smoking in public areas,” Katz, director of the Los Angeles County Health Agency, said by email.

“This would harm public health by eroding social norms about the use of tobacco,” Katz added. “In addition, the article demonstrates that heat-not-burn products release carcinogens, so the use of these products in public space would harm the health of both the user and those around the user.”

 Resource : http://ewn.co.za/2017/05/29/heat-not-burn-cigarettes-still-release-cancer-causing-chemicals

Rising cigarette prices fail to reduce smoking

Price controls fail to affect smoking cessation due to weak implementation

The cheap cost of cigarettes in Kenya —sold as a single stick instead of by the pack as required by law — is keeping smokers on a habit that the world targets to reduce drastically, a new survey ahead of the World Tobacco Day, tomorrow, has shown.

In the survey conducted in Nairobi and Embu Counties, smokers indicated that they have considered quitting due to health concerns, but not because of cost, since they can still afford to buy a few sticks at a time, instead of whole packs. Price was actually the least mentioned reason for why respondents felt motivated to quit smoking. In fact, the study showed that certain groups of people were likely to spend more money on smoking than on other more important needs.

“Young people, the less-educated and people with lower incomes are paying more for cigarettes and spending a greater proportion of their income on tobacco at the expense of other individual and family needs,” the research paper states in part.

While a cigarette pack, containing 20 sticks, costs between Sh120 to Sh250, neighbourhood shopkeepers and street vendors across the country sell a single stick for between Sh7 to Sh10. As a result of these tobacco products being accessible and affordable, over 60 per cent of tobacco users in the two counties reported smoking nine sticks a day, on average.

The total market value of cigarettes in Kenya is estimated at Sh35 billion, which translates to about 7.4 billion sticks.

This is based on responses from 592 smokers who were surveyed by the International Institute for Legislative Affairs (IILA) for a study titled Influence of retail price on tobacco smoking habits in Kenya: A case study of smokers in Nairobi and Embu Counties.

Most adult smokers (90 per cent) started smoking as teens or children.

EQUAL TAXATION

Higher prices and taxation are considered the most effective means of controlling and stopping tobacco use in the world as stated in the study:

“As tobacco retail prices increased (in the past two years under the Excise Duty Act of 2015), most smokers chose to smoke fewer cigarettes or opted to change to cheaper brands rather than to quit, unless the tobacco retail prices rose to very high levels.”

However, despite the effect of higher prices and taxes on tobacco control, Emma Wanyonyi, the Executive Director of IILA, says that the gains are being eroded.

 “It is surprising that in the 2017-2018 budget statement, the Treasury CS (Henry Rotich) has taken an about-turn by introducing a two-tier tax structure of Sh2,500 per 1,000 cigarettes with filters and Sh1,800 per 1,000 cigarettes for plain cigarettes,” she says.

What this means is that economy cigarette brands such as Rooster and Rocket will cost less than premium brands like Dunhill and Embassy and mid-priced brands like Sportsman, Sweet Menthol, Super Match and Safari.

Mr Rotich says the move was informed by “industry concerns” on current taxation of cigarettes which was termed as inequitable and adversely affected demand for locally produced low-value cigarettes.

This move was to cushion local cigarette manufacturers and in turn spur growth in sale of cheaper cigarette brands whose demand had gone down due to high taxation.

This, however, from a public health perspective, Ms Wanyonyi maintains, is unsettling.

“The cigarette types targeted for the reduction in tax rate are mostly consumed by low-income earners who already bear a disproportionate share of the health and economic burden,” she notes.

Therefore, the study recommends a review of tobacco taxation and excise duty tax on cigarettes which is currently lower than the World Health Organisation recommended 70 per cent of retail selling price. It also recommends a uniform tax structure for all tobacco products, equal treatment of all tobacco product brands and elimination of pro-poor policies that keep some cigarette brands within reach of low-income earners.

The study also shows that there is a lower incidence of tobacco use by women. Like the 2014 Global Adult Tobacco Survey, the study found that a majority of female tobacco users (83 per cent) use smokeless tobacco.

However, the research indicates that given that female smokers are  frowned upon, there is a high likelihood that they would be unlikely to join other smokers in the designated smoking areas.

_____

PROPOSALS

1. Protect gains achieved so far, including the current tax structure under the Excise Duty Act, 2015 (single/uniform tax structure applicable to all tobacco products).

2. Progressively increase tobacco excise tax rates towards the WHO recommended 70 per cent of retail selling price.

3. Eliminate ‘pro- poor policies’ in relation to taxation of tobacco products to protect low-income earners from the disproportionate burden of accompanying health costs.

4. Equal treatment of all tobacco products to avoid brand switching.

5. Strengthen enforcement of ban in single sticks as provided for in the Tobacco Control Act.

****

THE NUMBERS

About 1 million cancer deaths per year globally are due to tobacco smoking.

There are about 2.5 million tobacco users in the country, mostly men. On average, a Kenyan smoker spends about Sh48 a day or Sh1, 072 a month on cigarettes, with young people aged 15 to 24 years spending nearly double that amount per month on the habit.

Resource :http://www.nation.co.ke/health/Rising-cigarette-prices-fail-to-reduce-smoking/3476990-3947018-hbw1eo/

Robber steals a beer then returns for cigarettes,

NATIONAL CITY, Calif. — A man who demanded cash at a National City 7- Eleven store early Wednesday but only managed to take a beer returned about 90 minutes later and tried to rob it a second time, police said.

The 30-year-old suspect first tried to purchase a beer at the convenience store at the corner of East Plaza Boulevard and South Harbison Avenue using a fake $10 bill around 12:30 a.m., but the clerk quickly noticed the money was counterfeit, according to National City police.

The suspect then reached toward his waistband and told the clerk he had a gun. He demanded money from the register, but ultimately fled with only the beer, police said.

Shortly after 2 a.m., the suspect again entered the store and ordered the same employee to hand over cash from the register and cigarettes from a display, according to police.

The clerk was able to call 911 and told a dispatcher “he’s back,” police said. Responding officers arrested the suspect as he was attempting to leave the store. His name was not immediately available.

Resource : http://fox5sandiego.com/2017/05/24/robber-steals-a-beer-then-returns-for-cigarettes-cash/