Tobacco Articles: category youth

Electronic Cigarettes Debated At Legislature

Jim@hawaiireporter.com (JIM DOOLEY) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

A bill that would ban the sale of smokeless electronic cigarettes to minors and impose the 70% tobacco tax on the devices was briskly debated at the state Legislature today. All of the testimony favored a ban on sale of the products to minors but more than 1,000 individuals and companies protested imposition of the tobacco tax on “e-cigarettes”. The devices deliver vaporized nicotine mist to users but contain no tobacco and generate none of the carcinogenic smoke generated by a burning cigarette, proponents said. State Health Department Director Loretta Fuddy told members of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, “There is very little known about the long term health effects of the use of e-cigarettes or the vapors given off. Recent studies have shown that within one liquid nicotine cartridge there is enough nicotine to cause serious illness or even death.” . . . Cory Smith, president of local retailer Volcano Fine Electronic Cigarettes, said the product actually helps tobacco smokers quit their habits and produces none of the second-hand smoke issues associated with traditional tobacco cigarettes. "The tohacco tax is aimed at deterring tobacco use and generating revenue to pay for health care costs associated with tobacco-related harms,” Smith said. "Since the research thus far indicates that e-cigarettes show promise as a means to deter tobacco use and thereby reduce the cost of tobacco-related harms, it makes no sense to subject e-cigarettes to the tobacco tax,” Smith said. Taxing e-cigarettes at the 70% tobacco rate would shut down his business and drive customers to the internet

A Network Method of Measuring Affiliation-Based Peer Influence: Assessing the Influences of Teammates’ Smoking on Adolescent Smoking : Early View

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Using a network analytic framework, this study introduces a new method to measure peer influence based on adolescents’ affiliations or 2-mode social network data. Exposure based on affiliations is referred to as the “affiliation exposure model.” This study demonstrates the methodology using data on young adolescent smoking being influenced by joint participation in school-based organized sports activities with smokers. The analytic sample consisted of 1,260 American adolescents from ages 10 to 13 in middle schools, and the results of the longitudinal regression analyses showed that adolescents were more likely to smoke as they were increasingly exposed to teammates who smoke. This study illustrates the importance of peer influence via affiliation through team sports.

Playing school sports affects youths' smoking

shutcheon@srcd.org — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Young people's choices about using drugs and alcohol are influenced by peers--not only close friends, but also sports teammates. A new study of middle schoolers and their social networks has found that teammates' smoking plays a big role in youths' decisions about smoking, but adolescents who take part in a lot of sports smoke less. The study was conducted at the University of Southern California (USC) and appears in the journal Child Development. Researchers looked at 1,260 ethnically diverse, urban, middle-class sixth through eighth graders. They asked the students about their own smoking behavior, and they asked them to name friends at school as well as the organized sports they took part in at school. Then, using a social network method they developed, they examined how participation in sports with teammates who smoked affected adolescents' smoking behavior.

EDITORIAL: Bans rarely an answer

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Add more ammunition to the arsenal of anti-smoking efforts with the latest report on secondhand smoke from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. According to researchers, more than 1 in 5 high school and middle school student are passengers in cars while others are smoking. (One caveat: In the case of the high school students, the study did not determine if they were in cars with their parents or their peers.) . . . But turning smokers into criminals isn’t the answer. Raising cigarette prices has been somewhat effective, although that has created a black-market trade that will only get worse. Attempts at prohibition didn’t work with alcohol. And let’s be honest: It hasn’t worked with drugs. Why would we expect it to work with tobacco? Education would be a more worthy effort, if we spent as much time — and funding — on discussion as we spend trying to dictate individual behavior.

LETTER: Allegan's tobacco ban will lead to healthier nation (Letter)

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Reading Rod Smith's article that Allegan County has banned tobacco use in parks with playground equipment puts a smile on my face. According to facts shared in the article, "the use of tobacco is the most preventable cause of death and disease in the United States… Secondhand smoke, cigarette butts and tobacco spit may be hazardous to people and animals." These are not facts to be taken lightly. I understand tobacco and smokeless tobacco users may be offended at such a law, and may feel their rights are being invaded. However, what about the rights of those who are being exposed to the harmful chemicals produced by tobacco usage? Furthermore, what about children (who can be most vulnerable) and their invasion of rights? Many children are not asked if they mind the secondhand smoke.

Jolly Good Smoke: Old-fashioned tobacconists face an uncertain future as the world fights cigarettes and Swisher Sweets.

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Stogies on Grand (961 Grand Ave., St. Paul) and Lewis Pipes and Tobacco (527 Marquette Ave., Minneapolis) evoke completely different feelings upon entrance. Stogies’ quaint Grand Avenue storefront leads into a labyrinthine store filled with laughter and smoke, while Lewis’ massive skyscraper hat sits over a clean one-room shop. The men who own these stores, on the other hand, look quite similar — tall, broad and worried around the eyes. The wrinkles that crease their faces are in no small part due to the stress of working in an industry constantly teetering on the brink — “… really the only industry that could vanish, poof, at the whim of a Congress session,” as Lewis Tobaco owner Rich Lewis puts it. . . . Many tobacco enthusiasts also malign the 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which gives the president full regulatory power over the tobacco industry. “Too many kids have been grabbing cheap cigars, Swishers and Dutch Masters, scraping out the middle and filling them with marijuana. You might have heard of it — it’s called ‘blunting,’” Wolk said. In an effort to stop the illegal activity, the newer bill would also effectively put stores like Stogies out business. This year will mark the 40th anniversary of Lewis’ tenure at his family’s tobacco shop, and he has seen business grind to a near halt as higher taxes are passed and stricter smoking restrictions are enacted. . . . Make sure to keep tamping the ash down as you smoke, and the bowl should puff all the way down without a problem. Remember to keep it an occasional celebration, and enjoy!

Bid to filter out the glamour from cigs: PACK-ET IN ... anti-smoking campaigner Ailsa Rutter is urging families to get behind the new packaging bid.

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

PARENTS in South Tyneside are being urged to help protect children from starting to smoke by backing a new campaign calling for plain tobacco packaging. The Plain Packs Protect campaign is being launched by health campaigners Fresh, aimed at banning the kind of glitzy packaging which can attract youngsters. Kids as young as nine in the region have been reported as starting smoking, and colourfully eye-catching and increasingly innovative packs of cigarettes can act as ‘silent salesmen’. The campaign comes after the Gazette revealed last week that the overall cost of smoking-related hospital admissions in the borough has risen to £3.9m annually.

Aurora group targeting underage smoking wants to license some tobacco sales

cillescas@denverpost.com (Carlos Illescas) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

AURORA -- A group determined to prevent minors from using tobacco is asking the city to issue licenses to sell tobacco products other than cigarettes. Tobacco-Free Aurora has in recent weeks urged City Council members to adopt a licensing policy. State statutes place financial penalties on communities that license cigarette sales, allowing the state to withhold funds collected from tobacco taxes. But other tobacco products are free to be licensed without penalty. By licensing the noncigarette products, including chewing tobacco and cigars, cities may better track who is selling those items and can enforce laws, similar to the way communities regulate alcohol sales to minors.

Health Unit pushing an expanded smoking ban

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

A Grey County committee has been instructed to look at a proposal by public health that would prohibit people from smoking at outdoor areas where children and youth tend to gather, such as parks, pools, beaches and sports fields. Dr. Hazel Lynn, Grey-Bruce’s medical officer of health, said the goal of an outdoor smoking ban is to reduce even further the number of times a child or youth sees someone puffing on a cigarette. “Smoke Free Ontario basically protects people from second-hand smoke. It didn’t have a lot to do with the rest of it. Now we want to make smoking an abnormal function in our society,” she said in an interview following a presentation to Grey County council Tuesday. Council voted to refer consideration of a Smoke Free Outdoor Spaces bylaw to the county’s corporate services committee.

Education Ministry Bans Sale And Consumption Of Alcohol And Tobacco In Educational Institutions

user@ukranews.com — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

The Ministry of Education, Science, Youth and Sports has prohibited sale and consumption of alcohol and tobacco in the premises and on territory of educational institutions, reads the Ministry order No.136 dated February 8. The document also foresees educational institutions' termination ahead of term of lease contracts with business entities that sell alcohol and tobacco in the premises and on territory of educational institutions. The Education Ministry instructed leadership of educational institutions to conduct explanatory work among pupils, students and cadets as to the legislation norms concerning responsibility for drinking booze and low-alcohol beverages. As Ukrainian News earlier reported, the Education Ministry in September 2011 expressed its worries over the tobacco smoking contagion among schoolchildren.

WILLIAMS: Tobacco ban wouldn't be most effective step

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

According to researchers, more than 1 in 5 high school and middle school students are passengers in cars while others are smoking. (One caveat: In the case of the high school students, the study did not determine if they were in cars with their parents or their peers.) The study, based on national surveys in schools, and released by the CDC Monday, reports that more than 22 percent of teens and preteens were exposed to secondhand smoke in cars in 2009. That's the latest year that data are available, according to the Associated Press, but we doubt it has changed much, except perhaps to rise. . . . Smoking is a bad habit. Smokers know it. But turning smokers into criminals isn't the answer. Raising cigarette prices has been somewhat effective, although that has created a black-market trade that will only get worse. Attempts at prohibition didn't work with alcohol. And let's be honest: It hasn't worked with drugs. Why would we expect it to work with tobacco? Education would be a more worthy effort, if we spent as much time ― and funding ― on discussion as we spend trying to dictate individual behavior.

Cigarette packaging campaign

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

ANTI-smoking campaigners are urging parents to back a new campaign calling for plain tobacco packaging. The Plain Packs Protect campaign is being launched today in the North-East by health campaigners FRESH, aimed at reducing thousands of North-East child smokers who are attracted to glitzy brands. The average age most smokers in the North-East start smoking is just 15, but some start at just nine years old. FRESH believes eye-catching and increasingly innovative packs of cigarettes can act as ‘silent salesmen’. Plain Packs Protect is supported by FRESH, Action for Smoking and Health (ASH), Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation.

Ohio may ban smoking in cars: Local views focus on safety of children

bbauer@mariettatimes.com (Brad Bauer - The Marietta Times) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Hoping to reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome, ear infections, colds, pneumonia, bronchitis, and other childhood illnesses linked to secondhand smoke exposure, Ohio lawmakers are considering a bill that would make it illegal to smoke in vehicles when young children are present. Some local residents say the bill, recently introduced into the Ohio Senate, is too invasive, while others say it doesn't go far enough because it would only protect children who are younger than 6. Anthony Azzi, 21, of Marietta, said he smokes, but that he would never smoke with a child in the car. "It should be illegal to smoke with children in a car with you," he said. "But if they're going to do this, they should look out for kids until they're at least 16...At that age, they should have the ability to drive themselves or commute some other way." Kim Reinhold, of Cincinnati, was in Marietta visiting family on Monday. She said the proposed bill seems invasive, but that she would probably be in favor of such a law.

Less Smoke Exposure in Teens' Cars

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Action Points Explain that fewer teens are inhaling secondhand smoke in cars, as efforts continue to limit youth exposure to the potential harms of tobacco. Point out that despite this improvement, just over one-fifth of nonsmoking students reported secondhand smoke exposure in a car in the previous seven days. Fewer teens are inhaling secondhand smoke in cars, as efforts continue to limit youth exposure to the potential harms of tobacco, a nationwide survey found. From 2000 to 2009, the number of adolescents overall who reported riding in cars with someone smoking fell from 48.1% to 29.8% (P<0.001 for trend), according to Brian A. King, PhD, and colleagues from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. And during that time, the percentage of nonsmoking teens exposed to secondhand smoke in cars decreased from 39% to 22.8%, which was a 71.1% change, the researchers reported online ahead of print in the March issue of Pediatrics.

Health group backs Welsh ban on smoking in cars

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:00:00 GMT

PUBLIC health bosses in Cumbria have reiterated their stance against smoking in cars after the Welsh government said it could consider an outright ban. STUB IT OUT: The Welsh Assembly is considering introducing a smoking ban in cars to protect children if a new voluntary campaign is not successful The Welsh Assembly this week launched a campaign aiming to protect children from the effects of second-hand smoke, with a view to bringing in a ban if it is not successful within the next three years. The drive is similar to action taken by health chiefs and Cumbria Tobacco Alliance last year. Posters reminding drivers about the dangers of smoking in cars were sent to every garage in the county. The Cumbria-wide campaign was launched last July, after a survey of 713 smokers and non-smokers in the county found overwhelming support for a ban.