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Study: Smoking May Lead to Faster Cognitive Decline in Men 

the latest study shows that smoking is associated with cognitive decline as early as age 45, and that male smokers may be more vulnerable to these mental effects than women.

For the study published in the journal Archives of General Psychiatry, researchers led by Severine Sabia, a research associate in the department of epidemiology and public health at University College London, gave cognitive tests to 7,236 middle aged men and women three times between 1997-99 and 2007-09, when they were 44-69 years old, 50-74 years old and 55-80 years old.

The researchers also collected the participants’ 20-year smoking history through regular self-reported questionnaires.

And when they compared the cognitive scores to smoking status, they found that men who smoked showed faster decline than nonsmoking men over 10 years.The size of the effect associated with smoking was similar to that of 10 years of aging. Even after Sabia and her colleagues adjusted for the effects of heart disease, stroke and lung function on mental abilities, the effect of smoking remained strong. The more men smoked, the greater their decline. What’s more, the study showed for the first time that the smoking-related cognitive declines may begin as early as age 45.

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Heartburn Drugs May Raise Fracture Risk in Older Women 

Older women who take popular medications to control indigestion and heartburn may put themselves at higher risk for hip fractures, researchers report.

Long-term use of these drugs, called proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), may increase that risk by 35 percent to 50 percent for current or former smokers, the researchers added. Prilosec, Nexium and Prevacid are some examples of these medications.

"Although PPI use might be strongly indicated in some patients, at least for short-term use, we believe that clinicians should continue to carefully monitor the need for long-term use of these medications, specifically among postmenopausal women with a history of smoking," said lead researcher Dr. Hamed Khalili, a clinical and research fellow in gastroenterology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

"Our data supports the recent decision by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to revise labeling of PPIs to incorporate concerns about a possible increase in risk of fractures with these drugs," he said.

The report was published in the Jan. 31 online edition of the BMJ.

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• PPI heartburn drugs 'up hip fracture risk in smokers'  

“Heartburn pills taken by thousands of women ‘raise risk of hip fractures by up to 50 per cent’,” the Daily Mail reported today. The headline is based on a large new study of drugs called proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), which are commonly used to treat heartburn, acid reflux and ulcers.

The study found that post-menopausal women who regularly took PPIs for at least two years were 35% more likely to suffer hip fracture than non-users, a figure that increases to 50% for women who were current or former smokers. However, although this increase in risk is large, the overall risk of fractures remains small. . . .

Conclusion

This large study had several strengths. Unlike some previous studies, it collected information on and took into account other key risk factors for fracture, including body weight, smoking, alcohol use and physical activity. It also looked at the women’s use of PPIs every two years (rather than just asking them once) and took into account variations in use during this time in their analysis.

However, as the authors note, it also had some limitations:

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VIDEO: Non-Smoker Raises Issues with Smoking Shelter 

People in an Omaha apartment complex are getting all fired up. They say a new smoking station violates their rights.

They first took their fight to the county board, but Friday the women went straight to the source of the problem.

It's an issue that smokers and non-smokers want extinguished. It's a difficult walk Michaelle Daverkow makes 10 times a day.

"If I have to keep walking out to this while I'm trying to get myself healed, I'm going to need a chair to be able to get there." . . .

"Smoking cigarettes is my only vice. I don't take the pain pills because they don't work and because they don't allow me to be an affective parent.

The Douglas County Housing Authority say it's trying to keep Woodgate smoke free. That is why it banned smoking indoors.

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Large senior apartment complex goes smokefree 

WILMONT -- One month ago, Westminster Tower, a seniors-only apartment building on Seventh Street, made the papers when an elderly resident reached out, afraid of the effects that a neighbor's secondhand smoke was having on her health.

Today, Westminster Tower has been declared smokefree to all new residents.

John Bohn, president of the nonprofit organization that runs the facility, Westminster Tower Inc., said that his board agreed to step in to enforce a policy they had passed two years ago to limit the smoking at the residence.

"We passed a nonsmoking guideline in 2010," Bohn said. "That was fully implemented at Geneva Plaza, the other building we own. It's been nonsmoking for over a year."

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• Americans Living Longer, Report Finds 

Americans are living longer, a new report shows, with the average life expectancy going from 78.6 years in 2009 to 78.7 years in 2010.

Meanwhile, U.S. death rates dropped half a percent between 2009 and 2010, and hit the lowest rate ever, at 746.2 deaths per 100,000 people, according to the latest set of data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics.

And while both heart disease and cancer stubbornly remain in place as the nation's leading killers (together accounting for 47 percent of deaths in 2010), death rates here declined as well. Mortality from heart disease went down 2.4 percent, while it dropped 0.6 percent for cancer. . . .

There's also "a long way to go in terms of combating the epidemic of smoking, obesity, poor diet and exercise," he said. "If we could get the smoking epidemic under control, we'd probably see the numbers improve even more."

Another expert was more optimistic.

"This is good news. We're making major progression in cancer and heart disease through decreases in smoking," said Dr. Jay Brooks, chairman of hematology/oncology at Ochsner Health System in Baton Rouge, La.

The report is based on 98 percent of death certificates from 50 states and the District of Columbia available to the NCHS. . . .

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LETTER: Smoking areas needed 

I recently had the opportunity to stay with my parents in a seniors home in Edmonton.

I smoke, so I would join the smokers out-side.

I was appalled that these senior citizens do not have a shelter to smoke in. I am talking about seniors in wheelchairs and walkers.

They pay enough money to be afforded a shelter. Most of these seniors are unable to quit smoking at this time in their lives. It is one of the few enjoyments they have left.

I can understand that they are not allowed to have a cigarette in their suite; it would be far too difficult to evacuate all those seniors should there be a fire.

As it got colder and windier, there were fewer people smoking and I heard rumours that they were smoking in their rooms. . . .

They have paid their dues to society and it should be mandatory to have a smoking shelter in seniors homes to ensure they are smoking outside.

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100-year-old woman says drink and cigarettes keep her young  

Lorna Gobey smoked her first cigarette in 1940 - the same year the country was blitzed during the Battle of Britain.

The retired cinema-usher, who smokes 20 Sterling Superkings Blue a day, has gone through over half-a-million cigarettes since then.

The great grandmother of 55 - who also has 27 grandchildren and 12 great-great grandchildren - danced the night away at her local Labour Club on Monday, where she enjoyed her favourite tipple - a whiskey Guinness chaser.

Mrs Govey attributes her longevity to her fun-loving lifestyle and said her family ''wouldn't dare'' tell her to stop smoking.

Speaking from her home in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, yesterday, she said: ''I've been smoking since I was 30 and have had no problems at all.

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Living Centre going smoke free  

The Quinte Living Centre is becoming a smoke-free environment.

After a cigarette sparked a fire resulting heavy damages to resident Brenda Cherry's apartment at the downtown Belleville facility last month, officials at the retirement complex said they will no longer lease to smokers.

Less than 24 hours after the blaze had destroyed Cherry's seventh-floor apartment on Dec. 15, the initial findings by the Ontario Fire Marshall's investigator and city fire prevention office Dave MacMullen had ruled careless smoking as the cause of the fire.

Shirley Osmars, spokesperson at Quinte Living, said 10 residents out of the 118 currently residing at Quinte Living are smokers.

"But after the fire on the seventh floor and as of the new year, smokers here can no longer smoke outside their apartments," she said.

"Since the fire we have implemented a new smoke-free policy, restricting any smoking in common areas throughout the building. And we won't be leasing to any more potential residents who smoke in the future."

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Smoking one cigarette a day and a regular tot of whisky: How couple stayed married for 86 years  

A couple celebrated their 86th wedding anniversary yesterday and offered some words of advice.

Karam Chand, 106, who enjoys a daily cigarette and a regular tot of whisky, said: 'Eat and drink what you want, but in moderation.' The former mill worker added: 'I have never held back from enjoying my life.'

While his 99-year-old wife Kartari is looking forward to getting her telegram from the Queen next year, she is conscious of the need to stay fit and healthy.

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Smoking ban leaves some residents fuming 

Residents in a Whitehorse seniors’ complex fear eviction after the Yukon Housing Corp.’s (YHC’s) new smoke-free rules recently took effect.

Barb Legault, 60, lives in an apartment in the seniors’ residence at 600 College Dr. She has been smoking since she was 15 years old, and now goes through about a pack a day.

For Legault, it’s not a question of smoking inside or outside. It’s a question of kicking the habit or potential eviction.

She has multiple sclerosis, is in a wheelchair, and only goes outside once a month in the winter for grocery shopping. . . .

The YHC made the announcement last May, asking all tenants in their social housing units to sign a contract promising they wouldn’t smoke cigarettes, cigars or anything that “generates smoke” inside.

Legault does not want to quit smoking.

“It’s the only thing I do. I have my puzzles and I have my cigarettes.”

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Autopsy shows Whitefish nursing home resident, 93, died before cigarette set apartment ablaze 

An investigation into a Christmas Eve fire at a Whitefish nursing home concluded that a 93-year-old resident died of natural causes before her lit cigarette set her apartment on fire, authorities said Tuesday.

Mae Thompson was found deceased in her Mountain View Manor apartment Saturday after firefighters responding to a fire alarm at about 7:30 p.m. saw smoke coming from beneath the door of one of the nursing home's apartments.

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FITZGERALD: Senior residents red-hot over smoking regulations 

A letter of protest arrived. It was signed by the shaky hands of 16 or so cigarette-smoking residents of Hampton Care Center, a skilled-nursing facility in midtown Stockton.

"This concerns a possible violation of patients' rights," it began.

A new director has enforced strict rules, the letter said. Smoking is allowed only at designated times, in one designated place, for a designated duration.

Moreover, patients buy cigarettes but staff locks them up. Staff doles them out only at specific times; patients can't have their own lighters or matches. Sort of a Cigarette Nazi thing.

"The patient must wait until the staff light their cigarettes," the letter said. "The patients must also wear protective bibs."

The letter objected, "In the past, smoking a cigarette with a friend was a positive social experience. This has now become a regimented and demeaning experience." . . .

I never thought I'd argue for smokers' rights. But here are three suggestions:

» Patient evaluations should include fitness to manage smoking. Those deemed fit should be less restricted.

» Call the San Joaquin County Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program at (209) 468-3785.

» Do what Paulo, a former smoker, did three days ago.

"I quit over this whole thing."

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Prevalence and Risk Factors for Vitamin C Deficiency in North and South India: A Two Centre Population Based Study in People Aged 60 Years and Over 

In conclusion, we found vitamin C deficiency in a substantial proportion of the older population in two settings in north and south India. Only 10% of those in the north and a quarter of those in the south met the criteria for adequate levels. Our results are relevant to current debates about the control of non-communicable diseases in India. Low fruit and vegetable intake, tobacco use and biomass fuels contribute respectively the third, fourth and fifth ranked risk factors associated with mortality and disease burden in India [45]. Our results show that low dietary vitamin C intakes (reflecting low fruit and vegetable intake), tobacco use and biomass fuels are risk factors for vitamin C deficiency and add to the evidence on the health consequences of these risk factors. In poor communities, such as described in our study, consideration needs to be given to measures to improve the consumption of vitamin C rich foods and to discourage the use of tobacco. This includes a raft of measures including agricultural and tobacco policy, promoting awareness in communities through education and employment of local dieticians. The growing proportion of older people in India also highlights the importance of better information on the nutritional status of this age group.

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Smoke and poor diet cause low vitamin C levels in India's elderly population 

Up to three quarters of elderly people in parts of India have vitamin C deficiency, a study by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine found. Vitamin C is an essential nutrient for human health, playing a role from maintenance and repair of tissues to antioxidant activities. This study is the first ever large screening of vitamin C blood levels in the older Indian population.

Vitamin C deficiency is primarily due to a diet which is low in fruit and vegetables. Vitamin C blood levels can also be depleted by smoking or chewing tobacco and cooking with fuels such as wood crops or dung (used by 70% of the rural population). One of the effects of tobacco and inhaling fumes from home or cooking fires is oxidative stress (which can cause damage to cells) and the body uses vitamin C to combat this.

The study, coordinated by Professor Astrid Fletcher of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in collaboration with Aravind Eye Hospital Pondicherry and the All India Institute for Medical Sciences in Delhi, has been published in PloS One.

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