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• Smoking can make H1N1 effects worse  

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has named groups of people at a high risk of developing serious complications from H1N1 Influenza.

In keeping with the last two subpopulation releases which were focused on pregnant women and breastfeeding moms, the Sedgwick County Health Department will continue to send monthly releases focused on different subgroups.

Currently, one of the highest-priority groups consists of persons with chronic respiratory conditions.

These types of conditions, including asthma and heart disease, often arise from smoking.

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• Massachusetts' 'Model' Tobacco Cessation Benefit Spurs Unprecedented Drop in Smoking Rates, Heart Attacks, Asthma, and Birth Complications 

A "model" tobacco cessation benefit offered to Massachusetts' Medicaid participants has produced an astounding 26% drop in smoking rates in only two and a half years, and has already been linked to decreases in heart attacks, hospitalizations for asthma and COPD, and a significant decrease in birth complications.

Researchers from the Massachusetts Tobacco Cessation and Prevention Program (MTCP) found that up to 38% fewer MassHealth cessation benefit users were hospitalized for heart attacks in the first year after using the benefit, and that 18% fewer benefit users visited the emergency room for asthma symptoms in the first year after using the benefit. Researchers also found that there were 12% fewer claims for adverse maternal birth complications since the benefit was implemented.

The Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services said more than 75,000 people -- a full 40% of MassHealth members who smoke -- have used the benefit to try to quit smoking. Cost savings are being studied, and all indications suggest they will be significant.

"It is clear from these latest findings that the Commonwealth's efforts to help people quit smoking is a sound investment," Executive Office of Health and Human Services Secretary JudyAnn Bigby said. . . .

"As the nation debates the future of its health care system, the national significance of this research cannot be understated," said Robert J. Gould, PhD, President and CEO of Partnership for Prevention, a national organization that advances policies and practices to prevent disease and improve the health of all Americans. "These findings demonstrate that prudent investments in preventive health today will have a dramatic and positive effect on our health care system tomorrow."

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• Smoking: why women are at great risk 

Recently, further scientific evidence has emerged to suggest that women may be at particular risk from smoking.

This year, a Norwegian study of almost 2000 women showed that women were at a higher risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at a younger age, and after smoking less heavily, than men.

COPD is an umbrella term that incorporates emphysema and chronic bronchitis. There are four stages of the condition, which are ranked in terms of their severity.

"We estimate that 2.1 million people in Australia have some form of COPD, and half of them don't know it," says Heather Allan, director of the COPD National Program at the Australian Lung Foundation. . . .

This isn't the first study that suggests that women may be more at risk from smoking than men. A 2005 Monash University found that women were more susceptible to exposure to smoke than men. Allan says researchers believe this could be because women have narrower and more sensitive airways than men.

A report by the British Lung Foundation in 2005 suggested it may be because women's lung capacity is smaller, and population studies have also suggested that there may be a genetic element involved.

This is why health campaigners are so concerned that more young women in their teens and 20s are starting and continuing to smoke than men. . . .

The reasons for women's increased risk of lung disease have not yet been fully researched. According to NHS Direct in the UK, a gene that speeds up the growth of lung tumours is known to be more active in women.

The female hormone oestrogen is also known to affect the development of such tumours. . . .

For the cost of a local call from anywhere in Australia, the Quitline provides advice and assistance to smokers who want to quit.

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• Tobacco smoke linked with respiratory diseases 

Tobacco smoke is involved in uncontrolled asthma, a diminished response to anti-asthma drugs, rhinitis, nasal obstruction, and deregulation of the immune system according to an international expert at the annual meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) in Miami Beach, Fla.

Tobacco smoking has been mainly associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and is attributed to being one of the main reasons that COPD disease is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States.

"Recent studies have shown that smoking can be linked with other respiratory diseases such as asthma exacerbations and rhinitis," said Carlos Baena-Cagnani, M.D., faculty of medicine, at Catholic University of Cordoba in Argentina. "Both active and passive smoking has been shown to be involved in uncontrolled asthma and associated with asthma exacerbations in children and adolescents."

According to Dr. Baena-Cagnani, active smoking also causes changes in inflammation in asthma patients, diminishes their response to anti-asthma drugs, and has been found to induce nasal obstruction and decreased mucociliary clearance.

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• Smoking pregnant increases baby's asthma risk: study 

Smoking during pregancy increases the risk of a baby developing asthma up to sixfold, said a Swedish study published at the European Respiratory Society's annual congress on Monday.

The study by Professeur Anders Bjerg of the Sunderby central hospital in Norrbotten and his specialists showed that smoking leads to babies being born underweight, a fact that has an impact on the development of asthma.

The Swedish doctors studied asthma in about 3,400 children between 1996 and 2008.

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• Passive smoking in pregnancy linked to asthma risk in children 

Children born to women exposed to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) during pregnancy face an increased risk for asthma symptoms in early life, researchers warn.

“Smoking during pregnancy has been shown to be a considerable risk factor for changes in growth and maturation of the fetal lungs and the later development of wheeze and asthma,” explain Paraskevi Xepapadaki (University of Athens, Greece) and team in the journal Pediatric Allergy and Immunology.

But they add it is not known whether passive smoking in pregnancy is associated with an increased risk for asthma and allergies in offspring.

To investigate, the researchers studied data on 2374 preschool children, aged between 1 and 6 years, from 115 nurseries in five counties of Greece.

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• Impact of Environmental Tobacco Smoke and Active Tobacco Smoking on the Development and Outcomes of Asthma and Rhinitis  

Summary: Several deleterious effects have been described in asthma because of smoking: accelerated decline in lung function, more severe symptoms, impairment in quality of life and diminished therapeutic response to steroids. The harmful effect of tobacco smoking is not only on asthma but also on rhinitis playing a role in disease outcomes. Tobacco exposure can influence innate immunity diminishing innate production of antigen-presenting cells cytokines, as well as an impaired response to toll-like receptor ligands. Active smoking is associated with current symptoms of asthma and rhinitis and seems to be a risk factor for developing new asthma in patients with rhinitis. Tobacco smoking has been also found among the factors inducing nasal obstruction and decreased muco-ciliary clearance in nonallergic rhinitis. . . .

The early exposure to ETS, both prenatal and postnatal, increases the risk of IgE sensitization to indoor inhalant and, in particular, food allergens[13••,14] and subsequently may have effects on atopy and airway hyperresponsiveness, with the consequent presence of atopic diseases.[15,16]

More studies are needed to gain insight in the relationship between tobacco smoking, ETS and the immune response and inflammatory lower and upper respiratory illnesses. . . .

All these findings suggest tobacco exposure control should be a tool in the management of asthma.

Conclusion

1. Tobacco smoking provokes a strong immunological imbalance to those exposed. The innate immunity is impaired by tobacco exposure.

2. As a consequence, typical allergic diseases such as rhinitis and asthma could initiate or aggravate preexisting conditions or both. Active smoking is a factor for nasal obstruction in NAR.

3. Tobacco smoking (and probably ETS also) has a detrimental effect on the efficacy of inhaled corticosteroids, leukotriene receptor antagonists and on those patients in programs for controlling asthma in deprived populations.

4. Robust evidence is provided in order to empower both primary and secondary prevention by physicians.

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• Study arms smoking foes  

Las Vegas casino dealers are exposed to a host of harmful chemicals through secondhand smoke while on the job, according to a new National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health study.

The study, the first to examine the effects of secondhand smoke in Las Vegas casinos, reported that the dealers had traces of a tobacco-specific carcinogen in their urine.

The results were drawn from 124 casino dealers at Bally’s, Caesars Palace and Paris Las Vegas who wore portable pumps that measured the level of tobacco smoke in the air during their shifts. In addition, 114 dealers submitted urine samples to the agency before and after their shifts.

The institute conducted research and interviewed workers during three on-site visits from July 2005 through January 2006.

Anti-smoking advocates hailed the results of the long-awaited study, which mirror previous government and privately funded research on secondhand smoke and are expected to provide ammunition to those pressuring the gaming industry to implement smoking bans. . . .

The institute’s report found that a majority of the 147 dealers who completed a separate health survey reported symptoms such as red or irritated eyes, a cough, stuffy nose, runny nose and headache. In total, 11 percent of the dealers studied, who did not work in poker rooms at the time, had been diagnosed with asthma, while 35 percent had symptoms suggestive of work-related asthma. Many poker rooms have voluntarily banned smoking.

“That strikes me as enormous,” considering that only about 7 percent of the national population suffers from asthmatic symptoms, said James Repace . . .

A spokesman for Harrah’s Entertainment, which owns the casinos at issue in the study, declined to comment on specific findings, saying the company is still reviewing the report.

In response to the smoking ban recommendation, spokesman Gary Thompson said the company would consider a nationwide smoking ban provided that it includes all gambling venues, such as racetracks and tribal casinos.

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• Smoke alarm: Oklahoma tenants get few tobacco-free options 

Laura Clay says she was being poisoned by a neighbor's cigarette smoke.

Clay, 31, of Norman, said she started complaining to her landlord about the smoke coming in the vents of her apartment a short time after moving there in 2007. When her 8-year-old daughter's asthma worsened and her son was born prematurely in summer 2008, Clay quit asking and started demanding that something be done.

"They told me there was nothing they could do," Clay said, "that my neighbors had every right to smoke in their apartment. But we couldn't breathe." . . .

Then she started calling around for advice.

She reached Doug Matheny, tobacco use prevention chief for the state Health Department. He said secondhand smoke exposure in multi-unit housing like apartment complexes is an issue he regularly gets calls about.

Municipalities and counties across the country, including areas in Washington, California and Minnesota, have already banned or restricted smoking in multi-unit or public housing.

Matheny said Oklahoma isn't looking at policy options, but officials want to educate people about the health risks.

Percy Brown, project coordinator for the Tobacco Free Zone program, is working on a research project examining smoking trends in three of the Tulsa Housing Authority's 14 communities.

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• Asthmatic kids breathe easier with smoke-free air 

For children with asthma, reducing exposure to environmental tobacco smoke greatly decreases their chances of an asthma flare-up, hospital admission or emergency room visit, a study shows.

"We found this to be true when the child's exposure (to second-hand smoke) decreased, even if the decrease did not mean completely eliminating their exposure," Dr. Lynn B. Gerald, of University of Arizona in Tucson told Reuters Health. "Any reduction in environmental tobacco smoke exposure seems to greatly benefit these children."

Gerald's team documented the association between changes in environmental tobacco smoke exposure and childhood asthma-related illness in 290 asthmatic children enrolled in a clinical trial of supervised asthma therapy.

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• Teens' Lung Health Is Linked to Their Diet  

Teenage junk-food addicts aren't doing their bodies any favors, and their lungs are no exception.

Researchers have found that diets lower in fruit, vitamins C and E, and omega-3 fatty acids are associated with lower pulmonary function in adolescents.

Jane S. Burns, a research associate at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, said the clinical effects may not be obvious to teens or their doctors. "However, it is a matter for concern, because it suggests these children are not developing their optimal, potential lung function," she said. "Later in life, this may have an effect, as lower lung function is linked with earlier morbidity and mortality." . . .

Teens who smoked and who had lower vitamin C intake had greater odds of respiratory symptoms than did smokers who had consumed more vitamin C.

"Smoking still remains one of the greatest threats to both respiratory and general health, and health messages geared toward teenagers should also focus on smoking prevention and cessation," Burns said.

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• Research Links Behavior Issues in Asthmatic Boys to Tobacco Smoke 

Boys with asthma who are exposed to environmental tobacco smoke have higher degrees of hyperactivity, aggression, depression, and other behavioral problems, according to researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

The researchers said behavioral problems increased with expsure levels. In the study, posted online by the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics (www.jrnldbp.com), they noted that even low levels of tobacco smoke might be detrimental to behavior.

Stronger efforts are needed to prevent childhood exposure to tobacco smoke, says Kimberly Yolton, PhD, lead author of the study and a researcher at the Children's Environmental Health Center at Cincinnati Children's.

"The largest increase we observed was in overall behavioral problems," Yolton says, "but it was interesting that in addition to externalizing behaviors -- like hyperactivity and aggression -- we also saw an increase in internalizing behaviors, such as depression."

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• Calif. Court Revives Secondhand Smoke Case Against Apartment Complex 

An asthmatic 7-year-old girl's public nuisance suit against her family's apartment complex over secondhand smoke in outdoor common areas has been given the go-ahead.

On Monday, Los Angeles' 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled that Melinda Birke not only had standing to file suit as a tenant, but also raised serious allegations warranting further hearings.

"Whether or not her claims can survive a properly supported summary judgment motion, let alone prevail following a trial," Justice Fred Woods wrote, "this court believes Melinda Birke has pleaded a cause of action ... sufficient to withstand a demurrer."

The girl's father, Woodland Hills, Calif., civil litigator Johnny Birke, said Tuesday he believes the ruling sets a national precedent.

"This is the first time," he said, "that a court anywhere in the country -- and I can say that with some certainty because we did the research -- has ruled that outdoor secondhand smoke can constitute a public and private nuisance."

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This is the first time that a court anywhere in the country -- and I can say that with some certainty because we did the research -- has ruled that outdoor secondhand smoke can constitute a public and private nuisance.
Calif. civil litigator Johnny Birke, on the Los Angeles' 2nd District Court of Appeal ruling that an asthmatic 7-year-old girl's suit against her family's apartment complex over SHS in outdoor common areas can proceed.

• 75% of Beedi workers suffer from illnesses 

A whopping 75% cent of about 44 lakh 'beedi' workers in the country suffer from multiple illnesses due to continuous exposure to tobacco and other hazardous substances, a study by an NGO has claimed.

The study conducted by the 'Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI)' claimed that workers spent atleast 12 hours rolling beedis and faced the risks of contracting TB and developing chronic bronchitis, asthma, skin and spinal problems among others.

The study titled 'Caught in a Death Trap' involved a sample of over 1,000 workers of Anand district in Gujarat and Murshidabad in West Bengal.

The survey also claimed that almost all workers worked under "dehumanising conditions" as the industry openly "flouted" provisions of labour laws.

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• CDC Advisory Panel Votes to Update Pneumococcal Vaccination Recommendations 

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted unanimously yesterday to recommend that adults ages 19 to 64 with asthma receive pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23), known as PNEUMOVAX® 23 (Pneumococcal Vaccine Polyvalent). Merck & Co., Inc. is the sole supplier of PNEUMOVAX 23 in the United States. The ACIP based this recommendation on study data that showed an increased risk of pneumococcal disease among people with asthma. Pneumococcal diseases are caused by common bacteria and can lead to potentially serious bacterial infections of the lungs (pneumonia), lining of the brain (meningitis) and blood (bacteremia).

The ACIP also voted to recommend that people aged 19 through 64 years who smoke cigarettes should receive PPSV23 as well as smoking-cessation counseling. This recommendation is the first time the ACIP has recommended a vaccine specifically for people who smoke. The ACIP stated that people at increased risk for invasive pneumococcal disease include those who smoke cigarettes.

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