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EDITORIAL: Diehard defenders 

If the FDA has shortcomings, the right answer is to build it into the world leader in food and drug safety.

Instead, our two North Carolina senators would give birth to a spanking-new government agency, with all the fuss that entails. Ultimately, they fear that the FDA would be tougher on nicotine and tobacco smoke than their new agency would be. "Devastating" is how Hagan describes the consequences of FDA regulation for North Carolina.

"Devastating" is relative, however. Tobacco's effect on health -- smoking kills more than 400,000 Americans every year -- is indeed devastating. But the industry itself has been contracting for years. Tobacco growers got a generous buyout worth billions of dollars. And the largest cigarette company, Virginia-based Philip Morris, actually supports the FDA bill.

Yet the campaign contributions keep coming (Burr is the Senate's second-leading recipient of tobacco money) and the North Carolina-based companies keep getting their full measure of representation in Washington. Tune into the Senate and see for yourself.

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LETTER: Regulating a drug  

Standing tall, as your June 3 headline suggested? Not even close. How about, Sen. Richard Burr lectures empty Senate chamber on the benefits of ingesting carcinogens. Campaign funding from tobacco interests expected to increase.

Tobacco contains nicotine. Nicotine is a drug. Drugs and drug delivery systems are regulated by the FDA. Tobacco products should be regulated by the FDA.

The federal buyout is paying tobacco farmers almost $10 billion to help them break their tobacco habit. Those who have chosen to continue producing this poisonous product deserve no additional consideration or protection from appropriate restrictive legislation.

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EDITORIAL: Tightening of tobacco industry regulation long overdue 

A presidential commission's unanimous recommendation in 2001 that tobacco products be regulated by the FDA changed nothing. It generally was met with silence on Capitol Hill, where the tobacco industry had many allies.

But the industry's influence on this issue suffered a major setback in 2007, with the release of a Harvard School of Public Health study. The study suggested that tobacco companies were not living up to their 1998 agreement with states to help reduce smoking by young people. The principle finding was that nicotine levels in cigarettes had steadily increased between 1997 and 2005.

The legislation Congress is posed to approve will enable the government to reverse that trend. This change, alone, makes the action worthwhile. Nicotine is an addictive, dangerous drug. Products containing it claim 440,000 lives and cost the nation $94.7 billion in health-care bills every year. Government regulatory authority over this drug is long overdue.

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No smoking proposed at outdoor restaurants 

Joe Camel may be banned from outdoor bars and restaurants, if a Portland lawmaker has her way.

Rep. Joan Cohen, a first-term Democrat, wants smoking prohibited from decks and patios at dining and drinking establishments in Maine. The proposed state law is modeled after a similar measure adopted in 2008 by the city of Portland.

"We can visit any bar or restaurant in Maine and be assured that we will not have to contend with smoke," said Cohen, speaking before the Health and Human Services Committee last week.

"But on beautiful summer days, we have to make an unfortunate choice: dine outdoors and inhale smoke, or eat inside."

Cohen's district covers all of Portland and parts of Falmouth, a suburb just north of Portland.

Her bill won an endorsement from the Health and Human Services Committee.

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Hey, smokers: Take it outside  

It's been a long countdown to Nebraska's smoke-free deadline under the Clean Indoor Air Act, but come Monday, the deadline has arrived. . . .

According to a 2005 Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids report, almost 22 percent of Nebraska high school students smoke. That equates to well over 22,000 high-school-aged kids. An additional 2,200 Nebraska children under the age of 18 become daily smokers each year.

The report states that 4.6 million packs of cigarettes are smoked by Nebraska's children each year. An average of 2,400 Nebraskans die each year from their own smoking habits and an additional 400 Nebraskans aged from infancy to adult die each year from secondhand smoke exposure.

With numbers like that and consistently changing advertising strategies from the tobacco industry, Thompson said there is still more work to do.

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E-Cigarettes Will Revolutionize The Face Of Tobacco Smoking And Could Pose A Threat To the Smoking Cessation Market 

Whenever the term "e cigarette" comes into play in a conversation, the word "controversy" comes to mind due to the negative press put out about this new invention, but what are the underlying facts of this controversy? The American Cancer Society; the American Heart Association, and the American Lung Association have all had experts state that there is no proof that the e-cigarette is safe and that they may attract the youth of this nation and entice them to start smoking.

The facts are that they are not the "public health officials" they are reported to be. They are in fact private foundations that are not governmental in nature and the people or "experts" as they are referred to have in the past and are present operated by funding from large pharmaceutical companies. One pharmaceutical company in particular has a money trail of 99 million from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to these three special interest groups. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has an estimated 700 million worth of stock in Johnson and Johnson, whose products are probably found in your medicine cabinet at this very moment. . . .

The e cigarette industry has sponsored three known studies on the products to prove that they are safe and the studies are public. . . .

Considering that the pharmaceutical smoking cessation market is a 3 billion dollar cash cow annually, is it any wonder why millions of people are questioning special interest groups and the FDA about their stance on e-cigarettes?

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Health New Zealand Company News, electronic cigarettes 

1) E-cigarette Safety: Ruyan e-cigarette benchtop tests. Poster 5-11.

See. www.healthnz.co.nz/DublinEcigBenchtopHandout.pdf The poster itself is found in the following two powerpoint files: http://www.healthnz.co.nz/DublinEcigPoster1.ppt and http://www.healthnz.co.nz/DublinEcigPoster2.ppt

The mist of the e-cigarette has been rigorously tested. Of over 50 priority-listed cigarette smoke toxicants tested, none was detectable in the mist of the Ruyan® e-cigarette, except for a trace of mercury close to the limit of detection. Some toxicants remain to be tested before the results are submitted for publication shortly in a peer-reviewed journal. On the basis of findings to date, inhaling mist from the e-cigarette is rated several orders of magnitude (100 to 1000 times) less dangerous than smoking tobacco cigarettes. The nicotine dose per puff is comparable to that of a medicinal nicotine inhaler. E-cigarette nicotine is apparently not absorbed from the lung, but from the upper airways.

Comment: Given that continued smoking of cigarettes carries a cumulative 1 in 2 death risk, the findings, argue for

1) less stringent regulation for very low-risk non-medicinal nicotine cigarette substitute products

2) the sale of this brand as a non-medicinal cigarette substitute, as its emissions have been tested.

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E-Cigarette Safety For Consumers And Bystanders Confirmed By Medical Study 

One of the main arguments against e-cigarette products is that there is no scientific proof to support claims made by e-cigarette manufacturers and distributors that state the product is safe for its intended use and safe for bystanders. New research out of New Zealand would make that argument invalid.

The company, Health New Zealand, released its study (found here: http://www.healthnz.co.nz/coynews.htm) this past April at the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT) conference. Their website states:

"Given that continued smoking of cigarettes carries a cumulative 1 in 2 death risk, the findings argue for:

1)less stringent regulation for very low-risk non-medicinal nicotine cigarette substitute products 2)the sale of this brand as a non-medicinal cigarette substitute, as its emissions have been tested"

The study suggested that because the operating temperature of an e-cigarette is only 5 to 10% of the temperature of a tobacco cigarette that they are, as a class of products, not likely to produce toxic substances in their mist that will affect bystanders. . . .

Nicotine levels per puff were also analyzed: e-cigarette mist contains significantly less nicotine than tobacco cigarette smoke. Only 10% of the nicotine found in a normal puff from a tobacco cigarette was found in e-cigarette mist.

The conclusion that Health New Zealand came to was that e-cigarettes are cigarette substitutes and that if tobacco cigarette users switch to e-cigarettes that the health of both the smoker and the population will benefit.

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E-Cigarettes May Be An Alternative For Those Who Can't Use Nicotine Patches Or Gums 

"I can't use nicotine patches because I'm diabetic," says Linda of Benton County, Tennessee. "And the gums make me sick. I know I need to quit, but it's a mental addiction."

Linda isn't alone, because approximately 8% of the population in the United States is diabetic. Warnings on nicotine patches state that insulin-dependent diabetics should not use nicotine patches, but e-cigarettes, with physician approval, may be an acceptable alternative.

"We don't want anyone who's diabetic to have this "ah-ha!" moment and run out to buy an e-cigarette just because we say it may be an alternative to the nicotine patches they aren't able to use," says Tiffany of Ecigarettesnational.com. "We're not doctors here. We just want people to be aware that there could be potential and to talk to their doctor before making a decision. Medical conditions such as diabetes have to be managed very carefully and we don't want to put anyone in danger by telling them to "go, switch now, buy TODAY"."

In contrast, pregnant women are unable to use nicotine patches or gums, but are also not able to use e cigarettes, according to retailers and manufacturers.

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The E-Cigarette Controversy 

But despite their marketing as a smoking cessation device, E-cigarettes are attracting the wrong kind of attention. The American Lung Association and the American Cancer Society and American Heart Association are calling for them to be removed from the market. The groups feel kids may be attracted to the fake cigarettes and they have not been proven safe.

"Anybody who doesn't think this product without any smoke attached to it is orders of magnitude less harmful than cigarettes just has no concept of basic science," says Jack Leadbeater, president and chief executive of Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Sottera Inc. said to the Wall Street Journal.

They sell the Njoy brand of electronic cigarettes. Most of the e-cigarettes are made in China.

The Food and Drug Administration is considering regulation since they deliver a drug. So far the FDA has refused shipments of 17 cases of e-cigarettes.

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FENTON: School's smoking survey snubbed by community leaders 

An anti-smoking survey carried out by Rockwood Summit High School students did not convince Fenton leaders to snub out smoking in bars and restaurants.

Seven students in Suzanne Rainey's Language, Communication and Composition 2 class carried out a survey that showed that more than 80 percent of parents of high school students in Fenton believe smoking should be banned in restaurants and public places.

The survey also found that more than 80 percent thought smoking should be banned in restaurants and public places and that secondhand smoke can affect their health. Also, more than 80 percent of the students preferred not to go to a restaurant that allows smoking and believe that secondhand smoke can harm them, Rainey said.

The survey also found that 11 percent of the students smoked.

Fenton Mayor Dennis Hancock said the board was respectful, but saw no need to institute a smoking ban in bars and restaurants as a result of their survey.

Although the aldermen commended the students for their hard work, "my students learned something about politics that night," Rainey said.

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Hey, could I bum an e-cigarette off ya? 

Brookings husband-and-wife Jamie and Dave Corae started using the electronic cigarette as a step in quitting smoking.

Now some people are even relaxing with digital cigarettes, little LED-equipped drug-delivery tubes that, from a distance, you can't tell from the real thing.

They're called e-cigarettes , and more and more smokers these days are lighting up the electronic smoke substitutes.

South Dakota smokers have begun to accept the reality that smoking in bars, restaurants and other public places could be banned for good starting this summer , and now local smokers have one more option to help temper that craving for nicotine - and at the same time enjoy the feel and taste of a cigarette without producing any form of second-hand smoke.

That's because the e-cigarette is finally available in Brookings. . . .

A common complaint about the e-cigarette is that a user doesn't know when to quit taking pulls from them, as they never burn down.

According to the Coraes, with time, smoking the e-cigarette becomes self-regulating .

"When you get used to using these, sometimes, you feel satisfied after one or two pulls," said Jamie. "You don't always even need to smoke an entire cigarette's worth of the vapor." . . .

"At first, I used them a lot in public, and all my encounters with people telling me I can't smoke were deliberate. I like to be able to challenge peoples' perceptions, to explain to them about the product and to get the word out."

According to the Coraes, none of their public encounters while using the e-cigarette were unpleasant. Most business owners allowed them to continue on . . .

The Coraes say that, after a month of using the e-cigarettes , they haven't been able to completely quit smoking regular cigarettes.

"Sometimes you just get a craving, you really want to have a normal cigarette," said Dave. "But we have managed to cut way down."

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Tobacco tax won't balance budget: Swan 

Increasing tax on cigarettes will not help solve "challenges" in the federal budget's bottom line, Treasurer Wayne Swan says.

Last week, Treasury confirmed to a Senate estimates hearing that the coalition's proposal to increase tobacco taxes would save $300 million more than means testing the private health insurance rebate.

Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull has put forward a plan to raise the excise on tobacco by 12.5 per cent.

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Smoking ban discussion continues on city commission agenda 

A discussion about the city’s comprehensive smoking ban highlights the Salina City Commission’s Monday meeting agenda.

It’s also the last item on the agenda. The meeting starts at 4 p.m. in Room 107 of the City-County Building, 300 W. Ash.

In a study session this past Monday, commissioners discussed exempting some businesses from the smoking ordinance. They are expected to continue that discussion Monday, but a lengthy public comment session is not expected.

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• Deep Look: Author's book delves into 'unholy alliance' between Philip Morris, FDA 

Patrick Basham has taken on one of the most intriguing deals in Washington -- how Philip Morris USA came to support Food and Drug Administration oversight -- in a new book titled Butt Out! How Philip Morris Burned Ted Kennedy, the FDA & the Anti-Tobacco Movement.

Basham is a director at the Democracy Institute, a Libertarian public-policy research group in Washington. He is an adjunct scholar at the Cato Institute and an adjunct lecturer at Johns Hopkins University. . . .

Both Philip Morris and the anti-tobacco groups, mostly prominently the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, have denied those allegations for years. . . .

A. Though the alliance between anti-tobacco activists and the nation's largest tobacco company has been probed by some journalists, the public denials have tended to convince those who have not dug deeply enough. As I provide chapter and verse on how this unholy alliance has developed and worked, perhaps this will galvanize opposition to this travesty of public-health legislation.

Q. What do you think is the biggest revelation to come from your book?

A. That Philip Morris is really smart at pursuing its corporate interest and that Sen. Ted Kennedy, Rep. Henry Waxman, and their anti-tobacco partners are really dumb at pursuing the public's interest.

As I show in my "scorecard of who won and lost," Philip Morris got virtually everything it wanted, while the anti-tobacco leadership in Washington struck out. . . .

Q. What role is there for smokeless tobacco products in society?

A. I'm finishing a second book on the smokeless tobacco issue.

Scientific evidence suggests it can be a very safe and viable alternative for those who need nicotine but don't want the risks associated with smoking.

It's unfortunate that both the federal government and the anti-smoking movement won't provide truthful information to smokers about smokeless products, instead leading smokers to believe that all tobacco products are equally dangerous, which is simply untrue.

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