http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/country/australia.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://ibtimes.com.au/articles/20100318/youth-tobacco-free-day.htm http://tobacco.org/news/298888.html The annual affair of the Australian Network on Young People and Tobacco targets to raise alertness of tobacco as a health and social concern among young Australians with the age bracket of 10 to 25 years. How much is smoking costing you in actuality? This is the huge question young individuals are being queried on Youth Tobacco Free Day, this Friday 19 March. Youth Tobacco Free Day this year targets to focus the economic cost of smoking and inspire young individuals to ponder about other stuffs they could expend their money on. "Smoking derives at a great price and without a distinct benefit -hence what's the point, when all it only does is cost you?" said Youth Tobacco Free Day spokesperson, Anita Rodrigues from Cancer Council Act. International Business Times Australia Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/03/19/indonesia-president-obama-and-tobacco.html http://tobacco.org/news/298834.html One thing we must do is learn from the ancient wisdom and find out how to grow healthy tobacco. Indonesia has made a start and it’s a great place to do it. Unfortunately my country (Australia) has almost banned any private initiatives in this area. In some countries research is still going on with tobacco; last week Scientific American had an article stating that the Texas Vac Plant Extract Consortium had developed a tobacco based vaccine enabling the world to cheaply fight pandemic flu viruses. Tobacco is certainly not the key factor in many of the health issues attributed to it; the jury should remain out on that. There is growing evidence of the major impact of mercury in our environment and particularly dental interventions affecting our health that need study in the context of the smoking issue. Studies show the poor in certain areas have fewer chronic illnesses than the middle and upper classes in spite of the fact they smoke more and it is possible that this is because they have no dental amalgams in their mouths. These and other matters are still the subject of investigation. Let’s not throw the baby out with the bath water here in Indonesia now. More exciting is the combination of ancient knowledge of tobaccos healing properties, new developments in science and nano technology providing the possibility of placing nano particles into cigarettes. . . . As for the visiting president he can have a puff without a guilty conscious, relieve the anxiety of his beautiful wife and possibly soon a different strategy to lower health costs. Don’t let this go up in smoke, it’s not a pipe dream. Jakarta Post Indonesia Australia Fri, 19 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://ajrccm.atsjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/200912-1794OCv1 http://tobacco.org/news/298815.html Rationale: Cigarette smoke is the major cause of COPD and there is currently no satisfactory therapy to treat people with COPD. We have previously shown that GM-CSF regulates lung innate immunity to LPS through Akt/Erk activation of NFB and AP-1. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine whether neutralization of GM-CSF can inhibit cigarette smoke-induced lung inflammation in vivo. . . . Conclusion: GM-CSF is a key mediator in smoke-induced airways inflammation and its neutralization may have therapeutic implications in diseases such as COPD. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine Australia Thu, 04 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/wellbeing/smokers-kicked-to-the-kerb--then-all-over-town-20100318-qifl.html http://tobacco.org/news/298807.html YOU can have a fag with your focaccia in Leichhardt, but don't try smoking a ciggie with your sourdough in a cafe in Manly or Mosman. Banning smoking in outdoor dining areas on public land is increasingly common across Sydney, but it is happening haphazardly as councils adopt conflicting anti-smoking policies. Next week Warringah Council will vote on a draft policy to ban smoking in outdoor cafes, while Leichhardt Council is expected to endorse a policy of voluntary bans on smoking at outdoor tables - but won't enforce it. On Tuesday night, Waverley joined Mosman and Manly councils in banning smoking in outdoor dining areas, but the habit may still be pursued at the footpath cafes of Parramatta, Marrickville and the City of Sydney. Sydney Morning Herald Australia Fri, 19 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/03/18/smoko_proofing_treatment/ http://tobacco.org/news/298740.html Australian boffins have developed a treatment which allows mice to smoke cigarettes without the usual negative health consequences. The method could potentially allow gasper-loving humans to sidestep some of the self-destructive results of their habit. The key to the business, according to lead cig-boffin Ross Vlahos, is Granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), an agent released by the lungs when they are exposed to cigarette smoke. GM-CSF causes inflammatory leukocytes to activate in the lungs, which then leads to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other complaints such as "oxidative stress, emphysema, small airway fibrosis, mucus hypersecretion and progressive airflow limitation". . . . Unfortunately Anti GM-CSF isn't a cure-all, as the risk of cancer will still remain. "Our treatment deals with cigarette smoke-induced lung inflammation involved in COPD, not cancer and other smoking-related ailments. Quitting remains the best and only cure for smoking-related lung disease," warns Vlahos sternly. The Register Australia Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=637107 http://tobacco.org/news/298710.html Blocking a specific protein reduced or prevented smoking-related lung inflammation in mice, Australian researchers report. Inflammation is associated with chronic pulmonary obstructive disease (COPD) and many other health problems caused by smoking. In the study, researchers from the University of Melbourne focused on a protein called granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), which controls the growth, activation and survival of leukocytes, the white blood cells that are part of the immune system and that play a role in the development of COPD. The researchers exposed mice to the equivalent of smoke from nine cigarettes a day for four days. Half the mice were treated with a GM-CSF blocking agent (anti-GM-CSF). After four days, the rodents' lung tissue was examined for the presence of inflammatory cells. HealthDay [HealthScout] Australia Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://www.news-medical.net/news/20100318/Blocking-GM-CSF-could-reduce-inflammation-and-deleterious-effects-of-cigarette-smoke-exposure.aspx http://tobacco.org/news/298708.html Researchers in Australia have demonstrated that blocking a certain protein can reduce or prevent cigarette smoke-induced lung inflammation in mice. Inflammation underlies the disease process of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and many other smoking-related ailments. The findings have been published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Cigarette smoking causes lung inflammation, which can lead to oxidative stress, emphysema, small airway fibrosis, mucus hypersecretion and progressive airflow limitation. Since the inflammatory reaction to cigarette smoke responds poorly to current anti-inflammatory treatments, there is intense research to identify more effective therapies for cigarette smoke-induce lung damage. Granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is of special interest because it governs the growth, activation and survival of leukocytes directly implicated in the pathogenesis of COPD. News-Medical.net Australia Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://ibtimes.com.au/contents/20100318/smoking-anti-gm-csf-smoko-proofing-drug.htm http://tobacco.org/news/298707.html Based on the developed treatment of Australian scientist, experimental mice can smoke cigarettes without the usual adverse health consequences. This method can potentially allow smokers to evade some of the ill effects of their habit. According to the lead researcher, Ross Vlahos, the granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), an agent released by the lungs when exposed to cigarette smoke, is the key aspect of the study. GM-CSF triggers inflammatory leukocytes to become active in the lungs, leading to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and other negative health effects such as "oxidative stress, emphysema, small airway fibrosis, mucus hypersecretion and progressive airflow limitation". Vlahos and his colleagues at the Melbourne University used a blocking agent, known as "anti GM-CSF" (smoko-proofing drug) and dosed half of the mice with the agent International Business Times Australia Fri, 19 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/ats-ntr031610.php http://tobacco.org/news/298704.html Researchers in Australia have demonstrated that blocking a certain protein can reduce or prevent cigarette smoke-induced lung inflammation in mice. Inflammation underlies the disease process of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and many other smoking-related ailments. The findings have been published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. . . . Cigarette smoke triggers the release of GM-CSF and other cytokines and chemokines which cause activation and recruitment of more inflammatory cells into the lung,thereby perpetuating the inflammatory response and exacerbating ongoing inflammation. These activated and recruited inflammatory cells also release proteases such as matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-12, which destroy the lung tissue, resulting in emphysema. EurekAlert ksavoie@thoracic.org Australia Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/03/18/2849128.htm http://tobacco.org/news/298699.html Smokers will be banned from lighting up while sitting outside cafes at Sydney's Bondi Beach from July. The Waverley Council has voted to ban smoking within 10 metres of outdoor cafes in the popular tourist spot. The restrictions apply to council-regulated footpaths, but not to internal courtyards or beer gardens. Councillor Kerryn Sloan says the ban is designed to crack down on tourists who are not in step with Australia's increasingly anti-smoking attitude. "They come from countries that have smoking still socially acceptable," she said. Australian Broadcasting Corporation Australia Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/antismoking-campaign-makes-inroads-20100314-q5hd.html http://tobacco.org/news/298696.html A targeted anti-smoking campaign has made significant inroads into tobacco use among Arabic-speaking Australians. Smoking rates dropped by five per cent in the wake of the "Ma'feesh cigara men gheir Khosara" (There is no cigarette without loss) campaign which targeted Sydney's southwest. There was also an eight per cent increase in homes reported to be smoke-free following the advertisements, which appeared in three phases from 2005 to 2007. The message, in Arabic, was promoted via radio stations, railway station and roadside billboards, bus advertisements and articles in Arabic language newspapers. Sydney University Associate Professor Chris Rissel said it "demonstrated that targeting a media campaign to a specific, hard-to-reach population can make a difference on their tobacco use". . . . The research, conducted by Dr Rissel and colleagues, is published in the journal Health Promotion International. AAP Australia Sun, 14 Mar 2010 05:00:00 GMT http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/wellbeing/breath-of-fresh-air-for-bondi-latte-lovers-20100317-qfq7.html http://tobacco.org/news/298695.html A CUP of coffee on Campbell Parade, Bondi, has always come with a pleasant view, but until now it has also come with a cloud of cigarette smoke. Now Waverley Council has voted to ban smoking in outdoor cafes and restaurants from July. It also voted on Tuesday to ban smoking within 10 metres of playgrounds, parks and reserves. The vote places Waverley among a growing number of councils to have banned smoking outdoors after a campaign by the Heart Foundation. Councillor Kerryn Sloan, who put forward the smoking ban, had a lung removed because of cancer. ''This is an issue very close to my heart. We, as a society, have all been trying to assist people to give up, but there needs to be quite big incentives.'' Sixty-five per cent of all metropolitan councils had some form of smoke-free policy in 2009, the Heart Foundation said, compared with 28 per cent of regional councils. Sydney Morning Herald Australia Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/03/18/2849377.htm?section=justin http://tobacco.org/news/298670.html Anti-smoking campaigners have welcomed the fast-tracking of legislation that will make self-extinguishing cigarettes mandatory in Australia from next week. . . . Anti-smoking academic Professor Simon Chapman from Sydney University says the move is overdue. "This is something that could have happened many years ago," he said. "The tobacco industry have had the technology to do this but they've deliberately decided not to because they've put the preference of smokers to have cigarettes which don't go out ahead of community safety. "That should be condemned in the strongest possible terms." Australian Broadcasting Corporation Australia Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/high-fire-risk-cigarettes-banned-20100318-qguk.html http://tobacco.org/news/298668.html A new ban on high fire risk cigarettes will prevent thousands of blazes each year, the NSW Fire Brigade says. Fire Brigade commissioner Greg Mullins says that from next Tuesday only cigarettes designed to self-extinguish can be produced or imported into Australia. "The new cigarettes, when not smoked actively will put themselves out," he told reporters on Thursday. But he added, "People need to know that no cigarette is safe," he said. AAP Australia Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:00:00 GMT http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/123278309/abstract http://tobacco.org/news/298641.html Objective: To evaluate a Northern Territory (NT) government-led pilot 'Tobacco Project' in six remote communities. . . . Conclusions: Despite the minimal impact of this Project on tobacco consumption overall, there was a consistent association between on-the-ground tobacco control activity and reductions in tobacco consumption. Wiley InterScience david.thomas@menzies.edu.au ( David Thomas 1 , Vanessa Johnston 1 and Joseph Fitz 1) Australia Tue, 09 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT