http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/category/21.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://www.nj.com/warrenreporter/index.ssf/2009/11/great_american_smokeout_in_was.html http://tobacco.org/news/292285.html Pictured is an image from last year's Great American Smokeout in downtown Washington. This year's event will be held Nov. 19. WASHINGTON -- November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month and the "Great American Smokeout." What a terrific time to draw attention to an ever-increasing issue that faces many New Jersey (and Warren County) residents, says Community Prevention Resources of Warren County, Inc.'s Leeanne Del Prado, Community Partnerships Coordinator for a Tobacco Free NJ. . . . "We, as a community, cannot ignore the statistics nor can we deny the direct correlations to tobacco usage and sickness and death," said Del Prado. "We should commemorate efforts to stop smoking and recognize that lung cancer is fatal sickness in Warren County by supporting a smoke free environment. Your efforts can make a bigger difference than you think." If you or someone you know would like to quit smoking and needs assistance, contact Leeanne Del Prado at Community Prevention Resources of Warren County, Inc. 908-835-1800. For further information about Community Prevention Resources, visit www.communitypreventionresources.org. Warren Reporter Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www2.tricities.com/tri/news/local/consumer/article/ccs_dont_let_your_financial_future_go_up_in_smoke/35367/ http://tobacco.org/news/292284.html The impact of smoking on your health is well documented, but counselors at Consumer Credit Counseling Service (CCCS) of East Tennessee know that it can also wreak havoc on a person's financial health. Whether it's helping people struggling with credit card debt or trying to avoid foreclosure, counselors find that tobacco use adds a significant amount to monthly household expenditures and they advise consumers to consider reducing or quitting smoking to save money. A pack-a-day smoker spending an average of $5.15 per pack could save $1,879 per year by quitting smoking. These funds could be used to cover living expenses, reduce household debt or start a savings plan. Invested in a basic savings plan paying just 3 percent interest, you would have in excess of $21,000 after 10 years. Over 30 years, that figure climbs to more than $91,000. TriCities.com Herald Courier/WJHL-TV) Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2009/nov/06/wenatchee-teens-take-part-in-state-smoking-study/ http://tobacco.org/news/292283.html Wenatchee High School students were part of a teen smoking study by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The study, published in mid-October, was the first time researchers proved that one-on-one counseling makes a significant difference in teen smoking rates. “When this study started, despite decades of research and dozens of intervention trials, there was no proven way to reach teens from the general population and recruit them into smoking cessation programs, and there was no proven way to help these teens quit,” said lead researcher Arthur Peterson in a prepared statement. Statewide, more than 2,000 students at 50 high schools participated in the study. Half of the schools, including Wenatchee High School, were control schools. With parental consent, students from the Class of 2005 took a survey about smoking habits and attitudes during their junior year, and again in their senior year. . . . By the end of the study, about 22 percent of the smokers in counseling had stopped smoking for six continuous months, compared to nearly 18 percent of smokers at the control high schools, according to a news release from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Intervention also increased three-month, one-month and seven-day smoking abstinence rates compared to the control group. Wenatchee World schleif@wenatcheeworld.com ( Rachel Schleif World staff writer ) Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.alvaradopost.com/articles/2009/11/06/community/doc4af458991560c561402325.txt http://tobacco.org/news/292282.html The 34th Great American Smokeout, sponsored by the American Cancer Society, is scheduled to take place Nov. 19. The purpose of the event is to set aside day to help smokers quit smoking, quit using tobacco products, for at least one day, with the hope they will decide to quit completely. The Great American Smokeout began in 1971 when a Massachusetts resident asked people to give up smoking for a day and to donate the money they would have spent on tobacco to a local high school. The best way to prevent lung cancer is to never start smoking at all. . . . Texas AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas Cancer Council encourage all smokers to take part in the Great American Smokeout on Nov. 19 in a step to eventually quit smoking. For more information, contact Rita M. Hodges, county extension agent for family and consumer sciences, 701 S. Interstate 35E, Suite 3, Waxahachie; call 972-825-5175; or e-mail rmhodges@ag.tamu.edu. Alvarado Post rmhodges@ag.tamu.edu (Rita Hodges Extension service ) Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://jacksonville.com/opinion/letters_from_readers/2009-11-07/story/smoking_cessation_programs_can_work http://tobacco.org/news/292281.html I'm writing in response to the editorial, "Secondhand smoke: New study, same message." The Florida Academy of Family Physicians represents 4,000 family physicians, residents in training and medical students. Family physicians are the first line of defense in helping their patients quit smoking. We've known for years that smoking is harmful, not only to the smokers' health, but it also negatively affects the health of the public. Family members, coworkers, friends or anyone else who comes in contact with the tobacco smoke can be adversely affected. Florida implemented a statewide smoking ban on indoor workplaces seven years ago. It is an important step to protect the public's health, but it's not enough. We also need to do more to help smokers quit. According to the Florida Adult Tobacco Survey, almost half of Florida smokers report they've tried to quit smoking in the past year, and nearly 60 percent say they plan to quit within the next six months. However, without smoking cessation counseling and treatment, only 5 percent will succeed at overcoming their addiction. . . . Smokers should know that there is help available and that they don't have to quit on their own. The implications of not helping smokers quit not only affects smokers, but nonsmokers, too. Florida Times-Union letters@jacksonville.com (TAD P. FISHER, executive vice president, Florida Academy of Family Physicians ) Sat, 07 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.kpbs.org/news/2009/nov/06/free-service-helps-smokers-quit-reaches-milestone/ http://tobacco.org/news/292279.html SAN DIEGO -- A free phone service designed to help Californians quit smoking has received its 500,000 call. The UCSD-based help line has been in operation since 1992. The California Smokers' Helpline offers self-help materials, and referrals to smoking cessation programs throughout the state. KPBS TV/FM Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/display/article/10168/1484903 http://tobacco.org/news/292270.html Smoking cessation services should be integrated into substance use disorder treatment programs, according to David Kalman, MD, Department of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts, and colleagues, in their recent review of tobacco dependency among patients who sought treatment for alcoholism.1 "Clearly there exist many barriers to simultaneous treatment of tobacco dependence and other substance use disorders," the investigators observe. "However, most alcoholics in treatment are concerned about their smoking and the preponderance of evidence indicates that trying to quit during substance use disorder treatment does not interfere with sobriety and, in fact, appears to be associated with better alcohol and other drug use outcomes." Kalman and colleagues are among a growing number of clinicians and researchers calling for the recognition of (and interventions for) tobacco dependence as a common comorbidity with other substance use and psychiatric disorders. Psychiatric Times Sat, 07 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.cdc.gov/mmWR/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5843a1.htm http://tobacco.org/news/292253.html The prevalence of tobacco use among adults in the United States has been reduced by half since the 1960s (1,2). Despite this progress, low-income populations, such as Medicaid enrollees, continue to smoke at substantially higher rates than the general population (33% versus 20%) (1). The Public Health Service's Clinical Practice Guideline (2) and the Partnership for Prevention's Call for ACTTION (3) recommend comprehensive insurance coverage of tobacco-dependence treatments without barriers such as copayments, limitations in duration of treatment, prior authorization, and stepped-care therapy. Healthy People 2010 aims to expand coverage of evidence-based treatments for nicotine dependency to all 51 Medicaid programs (objective 27-8b) (4). To monitor progress toward that objective, in 2007, the Center for Health and Public Policy Studies at the University of California, Berkeley, surveyed all 51 Medicaid programs. This report summarizes the results of that survey, which found that 43 (84%) programs offered coverage for some form of tobacco-dependence treatment to Medicaid enrollees in traditional fee-for-service (FFS) Medicaid, with four Medicaid programs adding coverage since 2006 and 20 programs adding coverage in the past decade. Only two states (New Mexico and New Jersey) reported access to tobacco-dependence treatments without any limitations or restrictions. Of the 25 states covering pharmacotherapy for Medicaid enrollees in both FFS and managed-care organizations (MCOs), only 13 covered the same tobacco-dependence treatments for enrollees in both populations. Research demonstrates that providing access to comprehensive tobacco-dependence treatments increases quit rates. Providing Medicaid coverage for these treatments would ensure that all enrollees can access and benefit from these treatments. Centers for Disease Control mmwrq@cdc.gov Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.cardiologytoday.com/view.aspx?rid=50334 http://tobacco.org/news/292252.html Medicaid coverage for various smoking cessation treatments is limited in most states, according to a report published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly. Although smoking rates in the United States have been reduced by half since the 1960s, smoking rates among low-income adults are higher than in the general population (33% vs. 20%). According to the report, 43 of 51 (84%) state Medicaid programs offer some form of tobacco-dependence treatment in a traditional fee-for-service manner. Twenty Medicaid programs have added coverage over the last decade and four Medicaid programs have added coverage since 2006. Of the 43 programs that offered tobacco-dependence therapies, 41 placed some form of limitation on the coverage in the form of copayments (32 states), limiting duration of treatment (25 states), requiring prior authorization (21 states) and requiring enrollment in behavioral modification programs as a precondition for receiving pharmacotherapy (13 states). Only New Jersey and New Mexico offered access to tobacco-dependence treatments with no limitations or restrictions on coverage. Cardiology Today Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://health.ucsd.edu/news/2009/11-2-smokers-hotline.htm http://tobacco.org/news/292251.html A free telephone service that helps Californians kick the smoking habit - funded by tobacco taxes approved by California voters and operated by the University of California, San Diego - reached a milestone today as the 500,000th person called for service. 1-800-NO-BUTTS, also known as the California Smokers' Helpline, has been helping callers since 1992, when it became the nation's first statewide "quit line." Today, all 50 states offer similar services as part of efforts to reduce tobacco's toll on the public health. "The fact that half a million Californians have called for help shows how badly people want to quit," said Christopher Anderson, program director for the Helpline. "When you see a person who's still smoking, despite all the information about negative health effects, you might think they don't want to quit. But, more often than not, they just don't know how to go about it or don't feel confident in their ability to quit. We help them come up with a good plan and stick to it." University of California, San Diego Medical Center spence@harbar.net Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.webmd.com/smoking-cessation/news/20091105/light-cigarettes-hurt-quit-smoking-effort http://tobacco.org/news/292250.html Want to quit smoking? Your chances may be better if you don't switch to a "light," "ultra-light," or "low-tar" cigarette before you try. In a newly published study, smokers who traded in their so-called "full-flavor" cigarettes for cigarettes with these labels made more attempts to kick the habit than other smokers, but were almost half as likely to actually do it. Health officials have long recognized that brands labeled light, ultra-light, mild, and low-tar are no less likely than other cigarettes to cause smoking-related diseases like lung cancer and heart disease; that's because people tend to smoke more of them and inhale more deeply. But it has not been clear if making the switch to these '"light" brands had an impact on smoking-cessation rates. WebMD Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.moh.govt.nz/moh.nsf/pagesmh/9665/$File/2008-nztus-quitting-results-nov09.pdf http://tobacco.org/news/292249.html Key Points Introduction This report presents the quitting results of 15–64-year-olds from the 2008 New Zealand Tobacco Use Survey (NZTUS), including, where possible, comparisons with the 2006 NZTUS. Quitting attempts In 2008 an estimated19,600 New Zealanders had quit smoking in the previous 6–12 months. Three out of five current smokers had tried to quit smoking in the past five years, a third of smokers had quit for at least 24 hours in the past 12 months and a fifth had successfully quit for a week before starting to smoke again. Four out of five current smokers said that they would not smoke if they had their life over again. Three-quarters of smokers who had tried to quit in the past 12 months said one of the reasons was for their own health, while a third had tried to quit because of the cost of smoking. Quitting services and programmes Among current smokers, three-quarters had been asked their smoking status by a health care worker in the past 12 months. Māori and Pacific people and those from areas of high deprivation were more likely than the total New Zealand population aged 15–64 years and those from the least deprived areas respectively to have been asked their smoking status by a health care worker over the past 12 months. Over a quarter (27.6%) of 15–64-year-old current smokers had been given advice or information, referred to quitting programmes or given quitting aids by a health care worker in the past 12 months. Māori current smokers were two-fifths more likely than all current smokers aged
15–64, and current smokers living in the most deprived areas were twice as likely as those in the least deprived areas to have been provided with advice or information, referred to quitting programmes or given quitting aids by a health care worker in the past 12 months. A third of people who had tried to quit smoking in the past 12 months (‘recent quit attempters’) had used quitting products or advice in their most recent quit attempt. The most common product used was nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) (19.5%). Quitline was used by one in eight, and general practitioners were used by 6% of recent quit attempters. New Zealand Ministry of Health New Zealand Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.moh.govt.nz/moh.nsf/indexmh/quitting-report http://tobacco.org/news/292248.html Summary of publication New Zealand Tobacco Use Survey 2008: Quitting results, focussing on the quitting behaviour of current smokers, is the second report based on the New Zealand Tobacco Use Survey 2008 (NZTUS 2008) data. The first report, Tobacco Trends 2008: A brief update of tobacco use in New Zealand was released in June 2009. This report presents data directly related to smokers’ history of quitting smoking, their reasons for quitting, the products, services and advice they’ve used, and their awareness and knowledge of the different health effects of nicotine and tobacco. Baseline data for monitoring the implementation of the New Zealand Smoking Cessation Guidelines are presented in this report. The data can also be used to monitor progress towards one of the six Health Targets, Better help for smokers to quit, that came into effect on 1 July 2009. New Zealand Ministry of Health webmanager@moh.govt.nz New Zealand Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0911/S00084.htm http://tobacco.org/news/292247.html The 2008 New Zealand Tobacco Use Survey: Quitting Results published today shows overwhelmingly most smokers want to quit, Associate Minister of Health Hon Tariana Turia said. Minister Turia said that helping smokers to quit was a priority for the Government and was one of the six health targets. This report presents the quitting results of 15 to 64 year olds from the 2008 New Zealand Tobacco Use Survey, including where possible, in comparison with the previous survey (2006). Scoop New Zealand Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT http://record.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/14994.html http://tobacco.org/news/292242.html Under the University's tobacco-free initiative, smoking and tobacco use will be prohibited in University-owned and -managed properties beginning July 1, 2010. Research shows tobacco use constitutes a significant health hazard. With this initiative, the University continues its tradition of being a leader on important social and health issues, and of translating knowledge gained through research into practice. To help the WUSTL community prepare for the change and help those who wish to become tobacco-free, the University is working collaboratively with the community to support tobacco-use cessation efforts. Myriad programs and events are offered to help students, faculty and staff quit smoking and using tobacco products, continuing this month with the Great American Smokeout Nov. 19. . . . Throughout the Danforth Campus Nov. 19, WUSTL Dining Services will sell a special "Crudite to Go Cup" -- carrots, cucumbers, grape tomatos, zucchini, squash and ranch dip -- to help tobacco users make it through the day without tobacco. Washington University in St. Louis susan_zaber@wustl.edu Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT