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New Study Shows Many Unplanned Quit Smoking Attempts Are Successful 

Data published in the journal, Nicotine and Tobacco Research, shows that many U.S. quit attempts are unplanned and can be a successful route to cessation. In the study, almost 40 percent of subjects reported that their most recent quit attempt started without any advance planning, suggesting that for some smokers, setting an advance quit date may not be as necessary as once thought.

While a period of planning prior to quitting has long been thought to allow smokers time to prepare themselves for their quit attempt, the study explores the various reasons as well as demographic and psychographic data which may contribute to a smoker deciding to quit spontaneously.

"The study examines the possibility that while quit attempts may seem like spontaneous efforts on the surface, they may actually be the result of prolonged subconscious dissatisfaction with or concern about one's smoking. The results do not discredit planning out a quit attempt, however, a smoker needs to determine what may be the best approach to ensure long-term cessation," said Dr. Saul Shiffman, professor in the departments of psychology and pharmaceutical science at the University of Pittsburgh and study co-author. "All smokers should consider ways to manage tough situations such as cravings and withdrawal symptoms to ensure long-term success."

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• Non compliance with smoking ban implies fines 

Luanda - The non compliance with the smoking prohibition in public places, which was approved last Wednesday by the Angolan government, will imply fines that vary from 5 to 10 minimum salaries.

This measure covers institutions of central and local administration, hotels, restaurants, airports, night clubs, telephone booths, train stations and public toilets, said to the press the director of the legal department of the Ministry of Public Administration, Employment and Social Security (MAPESS), Jesus Maiato, on the fringes of the meeting of the Cabinet Council.

According to the decree of the government, it will only be allowed to smoke in places where the smoker is alone and therefore he/she will not harm the health of other people.

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Warning: Quit-smoking drugs can kill ... but they're still on sale here  

Two drugs to help smokers kick the habit will continue to be sold in Hong Kong despite claims they may trigger depression or induce suicidal thoughts. . . .

A spokeswoman for the Hospital Authority said Champix is a self- financed medicine, but added frontline medical staff will heed FDA warnings.

Pfizer Corporate Affairs director Geraldine Ip Pui-see said depression and suicidal tendencies are among symptoms contained in the drug description.

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Angola Government sets prohibition on smoking in public places  

The Cabinet Council approved Wednesday the decree establishing a ban on smoking in public places, as well as the creation of the Medical Emergency Institute of Angola.

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MPs want smoking ban before summer recess 

MEMBERS of the House Health Committee yesterday voiced concerns that today's scheduled meeting to discuss the smoking ban proposal may not take place due to absenteeism, reiterating the need to discuss the bill before parliament closes for the summer.

To pre-empt the absences, the committee is set to meet three hours later today. Reports last night said President Christofias would be meeting party leaders today, to hear arguments in favour of postponing the parliamentary vote until October.

Meanwhile, the Non-Smokers League of the Cyprus Anti-Cancer Society is set to hold a demonstration outside parliament today, calling for a smoking ban in entertainment venues.

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• VIDEO: Up in Smoke: How the Tobacco Industry Shaped the New Smoking Bill 

Welcome to Democracy Now!, Dr. Nitzkin. Would you say this bill was written by Philip Morris?

DR. JOEL NITZKIN: I would say so. The bill was negotiated between Philip Morris and Tobacco-Free Kids, and it appears from the actual text of the bill that the Philip Morris people did their homework very well and knew exactly what they wanted, while those appointed from Tobacco-Free Kids to negotiate on behalf of the public health community really had no understanding of tobacco-related science, of how and why kids initiate tobacco use, or the steps that could be taken to stop them. So it resulted in a bill that gives the appearance of effective regulation, but not the substance. And with the exception of the graphic warnings, which were added in the Senate, not in the original House bill, every provision having to do with restriction of marketing of tobacco products falls into one of two categories: either it’s already in place as a result of the Master Settlement Agreement, or it has already been thrown out by the US Supreme Court.

JUAN GONZALEZ: And why this alliance between the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and Altria?

DR. JOEL NITZKIN: Well, it appears that a political decision was made that the only way they could get tobacco regulation through the Congress is if they could get Philip Morris, our nation's largest and most dominant cigarette company, to endorse the bill. And they felt that without that endorsement, they could not get a bill through Congress. . . .

DR. JOEL NITZKIN: There were strong objections from the African American community about the menthol exclusion. To satisfy those requests, Representative Waxman wrote in a provision saying that the Science Advisory Committee to the FDA would have to consider the menthol issue and issue a ruling on it.

The problem is, the guidelines that the committee is mandated to go by, written into the law, says they can only ban things on the basis that they increase the risk of cancer or some other serious disease, or they increase the addictiveness of the tobacco product. There is nothing in the law that would allow them to ban any ingredient that’s there for the purpose of attracting people to cigarettes who otherwise would not smoke. . . .

To make things even worse, if I could continue for a moment, if somebody with a smokeless product wants to prove that their product is of lesser risk than cigarettes, they have to undergo basically impossible-to-do scientific studies. But if a cigarette company wants to market its cigarette as lower exposure, all they have to do is change the chemical composition by that small amount, and then they can advertise it as lower exposure without any scientific proof that it’s safer or less risky.

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Teen smoking down, seat belt use up in state 

Fewer Montana high school students are smoking, and more are wearing seat belts in vehicles, according to a survey of 1,800 high school students in the state this spring.

The 2009 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, conducted in collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, also found a smaller percentage of Montana students trying the drugs marijuana and methamphetamine than in the past. . . .

Smoking: The 2009 survey found 50 percent of Montana high school students had tried smoking cigarettes, down from 73 percent in 1997.

"We think it shows a very important trend about students' lifetime health," Kendall said, praising OPI and the state health department's tobacco-prevention efforts.

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New cigar bar gives smokers another option 

When Nevada passed a law banning smoking in places that serve food, Susan and Jeff Melvin discovered it created a niche for people looking for a smoking option.

The Melvins opened Jimmy G's Cigar Bar in downtown Carson City on June 5. While they don't serve food, the option for patrons to light up is good for business.

“The nice thing is, people can choose,” Susan Melvin said. “If they want to go somewhere where there is no smoking, they can, or where people can smoke, they can.”

Melvin said customers can order lunch or dinner from nearby Garibaldi's or Kim Lee Sushi and have it delivered.

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• State vote no longer certain on smoking ban for bars, cafés 

Opponents of South Dakota’s new state law banning smoking in bars, casinos and restaurants that serve alcohol might not get the chance to put the issue to a statewide vote after all.

That’s because the leader of South Dakota’s anti-tobacco movement filed a lasthour challenge to their referendum petitions Thursday.

The referendum petitions had prevented the ban from taking effect July 1 at the same time as most other new South Dakota laws passed by the Legislature last session.

If the petitions survive the challenge, a statewide vote would be held as part of the November 2010 general election.

But if Jennifer Stalley of the American Cancer Society is right, there won’t be a vote at all and the ban would kick in when the legal dust settles.

Stalley delivered a thick binder to the office of Secretary of State Chris Nelson, whose staff oversees election compliance, challenging the petitions at about 4 p.m. Thursday. . . .

Stalley is challenging the signatures rather than the sampling method. Nelson wasn’t at the office when Stalley’s challenge documents arrived with just an hour to spare. Bray said the next step is to begin looking at each one of the 9,891 challenges. That work will begin Monday. “We will have to go line by line,” Bray said. If enough of the challenged signatures are found to be invalid, Bray said Nelson then would consult with state Attorney General Larry Long regarding how to proceed.

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Zimbabwe Gets $60 Million to Boost Tobacco Output, Herald Says 

Zimbabwe secured a $60 million loan from the Africa Export Import Bank to boost tobacco production, the Herald reported, citing Finance Minister Tendai Biti.

The southern African nation needs about $120 million to increase annual tobacco output to 75 million kilograms (165 million pounds) from 42 million kilograms now, the Harare-based newspaper said.

Often-violent farm invasions by loyalists of President Robert Mugabe have seen tobacco production plummet

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EDITORIAL: The rights and the wrongs of smoking in public 

While living in the San Fernando Valley in early 2006, I remember thinking how ludicrous it was that the Calabasas City Council had adopted an ordinance that basically eliminated the ability for anyone to smoke in public. The secondhand smoke control ordinance specified that smoking was prohibited in all public places where other persons could be exposed to secondhand smoke, including indoor and outdoor businesses, hotels, parks, apartment common areas, restaurants and bars where people could reasonably be expected to congregate or meet.

At the time, as a half-a-pack-a-day smoker, I felt persecuted and loathed. . . .

After I left the Valley, I moved up north and found myself in a pro-smoking environment. It was widely accepted, if not condoned, as a bridge to meeting new people. But as the butts piled up, I found the habit to be more destructive and bothersome. The initial buzz that everyone gets with the first cigarette wears off as the day progresses. Instead of relaxing and enjoying cigarettes, I was tense and frustrated because my nicotine level wasn't high enough. And as a friend pointed out, it wasn't the nicotine that was making me feel relaxed; it was taking deep breaths throughout the day to deliver more oxygen into my body -- something that was defeated as my lungs sucked up nasty carcinogens.

By December 2007, I decided I'd had enough. . . .

although I am not in favor of the government legislating certain behaviors, the problem is that when you are a smoker, you simply aren't taking into account how you are affecting other people, be it their health, their level of comfort or their children by modeling for them that smoking should be a norm in our society. . . .

because fighting between the smokers and nonsmokers will never cease, cities like Thousand Oaks and Moorpark have decided to follow Calabasas' lead and make it more difficult to expose nonsmokers to the carcinogenic plumes of cigarettes through their own anti-smoking ordinances. . . .

While not every provision of the new laws seems fair, including forbidding smoking in rental homes, it isn't about the person who is committing the act; it is about everyone else who has to be subjected to it. For this reason alone, Moorpark and Thousand Oaks are headed in the right direction toward putting an end to exposing others to a debilitating habit.

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Moorpark modifies anti-smoking ordinance 

The Moorpark City Council changed its anti-smoking ordinance Wednesday night to allow businesses within the city to apply for a temporary permit to host smoking-related events.

The change will delay final adoption and approval of the city's smoking ordinance until a future council meeting.

The council unanimously voted to make the change after Moorpark Chamber of Commerce CEO and President Patrick Ellis said the original smoking ordinance would hurt restaurants and other businesses in Moorpark if passed.

The original ordinance made it illegal to smoke in public areas, including "within 20 feet of the entrance, exit, or open window of any public building."

Smoking is already prohibited indoors at restaurants, but the ordinance would have also prohibited smoking in all outdoor eating areas as well.

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Cheaper tobacco sparks outrage 

Outraged anti-smoking organisations are worried cigarette price cuts by tobacco companies will make smoking more affordable and lure former smokers back to the habit.

A Central Otago retailer yesterday confirmed both British American Tobacco New Zealand and Imperial Tobacco have embarked on what appears to be a price war by dropping the cost of several brands.

The retailer said a British American Tobacco representative told him prices were being cut some brands by as much as $1.10 a packet to make smoking more affordable in the current economic situation.

Attempts to obtain comment from the two tobacco giants were unsuccessful yesterday.

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New York man indicted in Blue Stilly Smoke Shop case 

A New York man appeared in federal court in that state Wednesday to answer charges that he lied about his role in the sale of untaxed cigarettes at the Blue Stilly Smoke Shop in Arlington.

Arthur "Sugar" Montour, 37, turned himself in to federal authorities in response to a Seattle grand jury indictment charging that he made multiple false statements when he denied having sold his Seneca brand cigarettes to the Blue Stilly, which operated on Stillaguamish tribal land for about five years. He was released and is scheduled to appear in a federal courtroom in Washington on July 10.

Montour did not respond to messages left for him at the offices of his company, Native Wholesale Supply, located about 30 miles south of Buffalo, N.Y., on the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation. Native Wholesale Supply sells Seneca brand cigarettes.

The indictment is the latest in a series of federal actions in connection with the Blue Stilly Smoke Shop. The shop operated without a state cigarette compact between 2003 and 2007. It was owned and operated by Eddie Goodridge Jr., who was until recently the Stillaguamish Tribe's executive director. His parents, Ed and Linda Goodridge, shared ownership of the shop. Ed Goodridge was a longtime tribal leader.

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Congressman Henry Waxman headed back to work  

U.S. Representative Henry Waxman, hospitalized in Los Angeles for a fainting spell days after spearheading House passage of a landmark climate change bill, will be back at work on Capitol Hill next week, a spokeswoman said on Thursday.

Doctors at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where Waxman, 69, was admitted on Tuesday after collapsing in his district office, planned to discharge the veteran California Democrat on Thursday, spokeswoman Karen Lightfoot said.

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