Tobacco.org

• DAYE/VanAUKEN: Brain Scan Strategy vs. Tobacco Marketers 

I believe the health warnings need to change. We’ve discovered, through Project Buyology, that cigarette pack health warnings have cultivated a Pavolvian effect in smokers. Smokers are stimulated to light up when they see the images, the warnings, the typeface the messages come in. We need to disrupt the vicious cycle that has developed. The thing is, smokers don’t read the warnings. They see a graphic which, in around 12 seconds, makes them feel good as they inhale nicotine. This cycle can only be broken by changing the health warning formats, composition and design frequently – I mean really frequently. Large formats, no formats, picture formats, red formats, on the back, on the front – you name it. The changes need to be dramatic and enforced often. This way the brain will not manage to link the health warning with pleasure.

But this is not the full answer. We need a comprehensive strategy to combat smoking. Cigarette packs offer are just one opportunity to influence change. The decision to quit smoking is not made when you’ve purchased a pack of cigarettes. It’s too late. . . .

The answer is a global campaign. A campaign with one of those mammoth budgets, funded at national level, and run as a global brand, like Gillette or Dove. This way the message might cut through the commercial noise and reach the kids who we know to be the main target group for the tobacco industry. After all, it’s easier to get hooked for life if you’re smoking by the age of 21. Online, wireless and through the tons of entertainment channels, the global campaign could be shaped into popularity and accessed worldwide.

It’s a project which might seem overwhelming. And it means thinking globally instead of locally. But I think by now we realize how global our communities have become. The world is connected through Facebook, YouTube, and Google. The fact is, serious action is needed. The tobacco industry is armed with a killer marketing weapon – a weapon sponsored by well-intentioned governments and supported by legislation everywhere. So let’s treat anti-smoking activities like brands, and beat the cigarette companies at their own game.

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• Habit going up in smoke 

In the space of a year, the number of smokers has shifted from roughly every fourth to every fifth person

An extensive joint study involving 5000 people conducted by the National Board of Health, the Heart Foundation, the Lung Association and the Cancer Society, has found a dramatic decline in the number of people who smoke.

Only 23 percent of the population smokes regularly now, compared to 28 percent in 2008.

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It's never too late to quit smoking and save your vision 

Just in time for New Year's resolutions, a UCLA study finds that even after age 80, smoking continues to increase one's risk for age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of blindness in Americans over 65.

The American Journal of Ophthalmology publishes the findings in its January edition.

"The take-home message is that it's never too late to quit smoking," said lead author Dr. Anne Coleman, professor of ophthalmology at the Jules Stein Eye Institute at UCLA. "We found that even older people's eyes will benefit from kicking the habit."

AMD causes progressive damage to the macula, the center of the retina that allows us to see fine details. When the macula degenerates, people experience darkness or blurring in their central vision, preventing them from being able to read, drive and recognize faces.

After age, smoking is the second most common risk factor for AMD. This study sought to determine whether age influences the effects of smoking on AMD risk.

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• 'Avatar' Joins Holiday Movies That Fail an Antismoking Test 

Stanton A. Glantz . . . said his Smoke Free Movies initiative would soon come out swinging with an informational campaign aimed at what he saw as the movie's pro-smoking message.

"This is like someone just put a bunch of plutonium in the water supply," Mr. Glantz said in a telephone interview last week. He was referring to scenes in which an environmental scientist played by Sigourney Weaver drags lovingly on a cigarette as she works to save the moon Pandora sometime in the 22nd century.

Scenesmoking.org, which monitors tobacco mentions in films, gave the PG-13 rated "Avatar" a rating of its own: A "black lung." Still, Mr. Cameron's movie, distributed by 20th Century Fox, is not the only holiday picture to earn that distinction, which indicates unacceptable depictions of tobacco.

"Sherlock Holmes" and "The Blind Side," which were distributed by Warner Brothers; "Nine," from the Weinstein Company; "Did You Hear About the Morgans?" from Sony Pictures; and "The Fantastic Mr. Fox," also from Fox, were similarly rated with a "black lung" for tobacco use, even though they carried a rating of PG-13 or PG from the film industry's Classification and Rating Administration.

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This is like someone just put a bunch of plutonium in the water supply.
Stanton A. Glantz, director of the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education at UCSF, on Sigourney Weaver's smoking-in-space character.

I don't believe in the dogmatic idea that no one in a movie should smoke. Movies should reflect reality.
"Avatar" director James Cameron, on Sigourney Weaver's smoking-in-space character.

Nick Naylor: Now, what we need is a smoking role model, a real winner. . . . two packs a day. . . .
Jeff Megall: Sony has a futuristic sci-fi movie they're looking to make.
Nick Naylor: Cigarettes in space?
Jeff Megall: It's the final frontier, Nick.
Nick Naylor: But wouldn't they blow up in an all-oxygen environment?
Jeff Megall: [long pause] Probably. But, you know, it's an easy fix. One line of dialogue: 'Thank God we created the, you know, whatever device.'
Scene from "Thank You for Smoking"

More Maori women stubbing out smokes 

Quitline says 800 Maori families would have an extra loved one around the Christmas table tomorrow if it was not for smoking, but more people are trying to give up.

New figures show 54,000 people signed up to the smoking cessation service Quitline this year, twice the total from four years ago. Daily smoking rates for Maori women have dropped from 49 percent to 40 percent since 2003. Over the same period, smoking among 14-15 year old Maori girls dropped from 34 percent to 22 percent.

Quitline chief executive Paula Snowden says there are several reasons why people are giving up smoking including because of the cost, because they are worried their children think they are going to die, for health reasons or because they are just fed up with it.

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Government likely to raise tobacco tax in bid to cut smoking 

The Ministry of Health has given the clearest signal yet that the Government is likely to increase the tobacco tax to help reduce the number of people who smoke.

Associate Health Minister Tariana Turia, who sits outside the Cabinet, last year spoke supportively of tobacco tax increases in a speech that has put pressure on the Government on a range of tobacco policies.

Increasing the tax was "worth exploring if we are genuine about wanting to prevent uptake" of smoking, she said.

An acting deputy director-general at the ministry, Dr Ashley Bloomfield, has said officials had advised Mrs Turia on a tobacco tax rise.

"No final decisions have been taken, but it's something that's definitely being considered.

"We do know there's good evidence that increasing the price - and increasing taxes is the way governments can increase the price - does affect smoking rates; young people are particularly sensitive to increases in price."

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3rd fire victim's body found under rubble 

Detroit Fire Department investigators found the body of Ann Louise Roeder, 67, in the rubble of the charred Huntington Hotel today.

Capt. Steve Varnas said Roeder, who was in a wheelchair and lived on the third floor, was among several people unaccounted for after the Thursday fire ripped through the building . . .

The fire reportedly began after a man lit his cigarette with a piece of paper, accidentally dropping it onto his bed. The man has not been arrested, but Varnas said possible charges will be discussed with the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office.

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Local bar owners react to smoking ban  

Contrary to the conventional argument that banning smoking will have an adverse impact on bars as regular smokers whom have grown accustomed to pulling up a stool and lighting a cigarette will now elect to stay at home, several Ypsilanti restaurateurs not only welcomed the smoking ban but celebrated it.

For Linda French, longtime owner of Sidetrack Bar and Grill, the legislation couldn't come soon enough as they had taken steps to limit smoking at the Ypsilanti nightlife fixture even before the bill had been introduced at the state level.

"We actually welcome it," French said enthusiastically. "For years we were smoking and we had a small non-smoking section, but about a year ago we stopped smoking for lunch and dinner and it increased our business tremendously."

When the bill's passing was announced, French said there was typical grumbling from some of her regulars but she doesn't anticipate the smoking ban affecting area bars and restaurants in any way. In fact, she is confident that her fellow restaurateurs will see an uptick in business as non-smokers will be more apt to patronize the local nightlife.

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• Battle lines drawn in final push to get rid of tobacco  

The number of teenagers who have never lit up a cigarette is rapidly increasing, leading some to conclude a sea change is occurring in young people's attitudes to tobacco.

Surveys for the Ministry of Health show that just over half of teenagers aged 15 to 19 have never tried smoking - "not even one puff". This is markedly higher than in 2006, when the figure was 39 per cent.

The trend, attributed to the increasing "denormalisation" of smoking through changes like the 2004 ban on smoking in bars, is even more marked among 14- and 15-year-olds. A survey of them in 2008 found that 61 per cent reported never having smoked - a figure that has nearly doubled in nine years.

The possibility of a radical shift in youth behaviour and attitudes to smoking coincides with a two-pronged push to plot the demise of tobacco.

The public health community and Maori Party MP Hone Harawira are campaigning for the eventual elimination of what they call an addictive poison that should no longer be considered a normal consumer product.

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Curiosity likely to tempt savvy youngsters to smoke 

Fraser Kearns is among the rising number of teenagers who have never smoked a cigarette. Not one puff.

But the 14-year-old from Mt Albert in Auckland reckons he will probably give smoking a try one day.

"I think most kids will want to know what every experience is like. Quite a few of my friends have tried it."

Two other Mt Albert boys, Matthew Turner and Adam Eynon-Richards, both 14, likewise say that although they have never tried smoking, they may in future.

"Because of curiosity," said Matthew. Added Adam: "To see what it's like."

All three report receiving comprehensive information at their schools about the dangers of smoking - but being told of the risk of developing lung cancer or heart disease seems insufficient to put them off tobacco for life.

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Everett Community College may ban smoking 

As a history instructor at Everett Community College for more than 33 years, Tom Gaskin has witnessed his share of hot-button issues on campus.

In hard times, there are budget cuts; in good times, salary increases and, just about any time, smoking and parking top the list of concerns.

In the next few months, the college plans to tackle the smoking issue head-on.

It will decide whether to ban smoking on the campus in north Everett or continue to allow smoking in designated outdoor areas.

"It's hard to tell what will happen," Gaskin said.

The college recently conducted a survey of faculty, staff and students. The results show nearly 60 percent of the more than 800 respondents favor a smoking ban on campus. Students, at 61 percent, were the most in favor of a ban.

EvCC would not be the first community college to ban smoking in Washington. Clark College in Vancouver has been smoke-free since April 2006

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KAMER: The Problem with "Smoking In New York" Trend Pieces is that They're Like Cigarettes  

The issue people take with trend pieces is that [this thing] should be [that thing]. That's not the problem with the "People are Illegally Smoking in New York Bars" pieces, because breaking laws is always trendy! The problem is...

They're just like cigarettes!

1. They all pretty much look the same. Observe:

On the top: "Blowing Smoke at a Ban," Douglas Quenqua, New York Times, 12/31/09.

On the bottom: "Inside NYC's Smoking Speakeasies," Sara Cardace, Page Six Magazine, November 28, 2008. . . .

The department has increased late-night smoking patrols. Undercover investigators roam the meatpacking district, the Lower East Side and Astoria, Queens, in what Mr. Marcus called a "cat-and-mouse game."

ASTORIA? People don't go out in Astoria. Ha! Yeah, we shouldn't really be too worried. Most of us who know where to smoke will keep smoking in our smokey places, and non-smokers can go to their sober unfun-bars. Though if you want to smoke in New York, you can do it legally at the aforementioned Circa Tabac or the wonderful Hudson Bar and Books! . . .

See. And that's how you do a smoking trend piece: fearlessly servicey.

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Some bars say just take it outside  

While restaurants and bars overwhelmingly banned smoking indoors on the first day of the city's smoking ban, some continued to allow smokers to puff away on patios, near doors and on sidewalks outside the venues.

Few business owners Friday enforced the city's outdoor smoking ban, which restricts smoking in outdoor seating areas, including patios and sidewalks in front of restaurants and bars.

Smokers flaunted the ban as they unabashedly lit up at tables lining The Strand and Postoffice Street, and many restaurant and bar owners said they were allowing patrons to smoke on patios.

Smokers lit up on the patio at the Press Box, 2401 Postoffice St., and bartender Melissa Gutierrez at Third Coast Beach Bar, 3102 Seawall Blvd., said she allowed smokers on the patio, though she strictly banned smoking inside.

Diane Flores Cowart, who owns Crow's Cantina Bar and Grill, said she banned smoking indoors, but she wasn't stopping anyone from smoking on the sidewalk in front of the bar, 2408 The Strand.

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No joy at Hookah Bliss as smoking ban looms: A day late and a dollar short 

Adam Bliss plans to open his hookah bar Jan. 2, just as he has most days for the last two and a half years, but this time he will be violating a new statewide bar and restaurant smoking ban that goes into effect that same day.

"We are going to wait for them to give us the ticket," says Bliss, the owner of Hookah Bliss on Franklin Street in Chapel Hill. "They are required to give us two warnings, and then it can be up to $200 per ticket."

A ticket is exactly what Bliss wants. He says he'll use it to trigger legal action against county and state officials for harassment and discrimination.

"I'm going to get the ticket. I'm going to go to court, and hopefully we'll be able to continue our legitimate business, as we should be," says Bliss, who sells 61 flavors of tobacco that patrons ages 18 and older can inhale through communal pipes. "That's where we stand is, we're going to fight."

Orange County Environmental Health Director Tom Konsler says he's aware of Bliss's protest plans but isn't sure how his agency will respond.

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Tobacco seed oil as an alternative diesel fuel: physical and chemical properties 

Vegetable oils and their methyl/ethyl esters are alternative renewable fuels for compression ignition engines. Different kinds of vegetable oils and their methyl/ethyl esters have been tested in diesel engines. However, tobacco seed oil and tobacco seed oil methyl ester have not been tested in diesel engines, yet. Tobacco seed oil is a non-edible vegetable oil and a by-product of tobacco leaves production. To the author's best knowledge, this is the first study on tobacco seed oil methyl ester as a fuel in diesel engines.

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