Tobacco Articles: org eclipse

Couch potato lifestyle is worse for your health than smoking

Tue, 03 Sep 2002 04:00:00 GMT

Poor diet and lack of exercise cause more illness than smoking, new figures show. The lifestyle of couch potatoes has overtaken smoking as the major cause of ill-health in EU countries for the first time, the World Health Organisation says. Dr Aileen Robertson told the European Society of Cardiology annual meeting in Berlin yesterday that doctors and governments must take the issue of diet and exercise more seriously. . . Poor diet and lack of exercise cause more illness than smoking, new figures show. The lifestyle of couch potatoes has overtaken smoking as the major cause of ill-health in EU countries for the first time, the World Health Organisation says. Dr Aileen Robertson told the European Society of Cardiology annual meeting in Berlin yesterday that doctors and governments must take the issue of diet and exercise more seriously. Telling people to eat more fruit and vegetables and to take exercise did not work if there were no policies to help people change, she said. "I am not saying that smoking plays no part in ill-health. I am saying that diet is as important and we have to get that through because it is not understood at the moment." Dr Robertson, a regional adviser for nutrition at the WHO in Copenhagen, said that Japan had the highest rates of smoking in the world but also the lowest rates of heart disease. . . The WHO study shows that smoking causes nine per cent of all chronic diseases in the EU, while physical inactivity and diet are responsible for 9.7 per cent.

LETTER: Health Consequences of Eclipse Cigarettes: Vol. 284 No. 23, December 20, 2000

Tue, 19 Dec 2000 05:00:00 GMT

At R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, we are committed to developing new cigarettes that have the potential to present less health risk to smokers. However, no cigarette is without risk, including Eclipse. . . In short, exposure of Eclipse smokers to continuous filament glass is extremely unlikely to occur at a level that may be construed to be of biological significance. A safety assessment addressing this topic has been published.6

In Reply: Drs Burger and Swauger do not substantively address any of the major criticisms of R. J. Reynolds' new Eclipse brand cigarette. . . Notably absent from the authors' comments is any discussion as to why Eclipse "cigarettes" should not be considered smoke-flavored nicotine delivery devices, subject to jurisdiction by the FDA, as we believe they should be. Second, none of the industry-sponsored studies mentioned by Burger and Swauger provides convincing evidence that smokers who switch to Eclipse will experience a lower risk of cancer or other smoking-related diseases than those who do not. . . No one can dispute that "the best choice for smokers who worry about their health is to quit." Rather than Eclipse, however, "the next best choice" for a smoker involves medical counseling on the broad array of evidence-based pharmacological and behavioral approaches available to treat tobacco dependence.5

Safety Assessment of Continuous Glass Filaments Used in Eclipse: Volume: 12 Page: 1071 -- 1084

Mon, 30 Oct 2000 05:00:00 GMT

Abstract: Eclipse is a cigarette that produces smoke by primarily heating, rather than burning, tobacco. The Eclipse heat source assembly employs a continuous filament glass mat jacket to insulate the heat source. The glass mat insulator is composed of continuous glass filaments and a binder. The purpose of this article is to address the potential toxicological significance of the continuous glass filaments under the conditions of intended use. Transfer data and the unique physical characteristics of the filaments demonstrate that significant exposure of the smoker will not occur. . . In brief, exposure of Eclipse smokers to continuous glass filaments is extremely unlikely to occur at a level that may be construed to be of biological significance.

Quantative Analysis of Potential Transfer of Continuous Glass Filament From Eclipse Prototype 9-014 Cigarettes: Volume 12 Number 11 Nov 2000

Mon, 30 Oct 2000 05:00:00 GMT

This study was designed to determine if the Eclipse prototype 9-014 cigarettes, which use a special form of continuous glass filament (CGF) as an insulator around the carbon heat source, yield CGFs via mainstream smoke. . . The low number of CGFs seen in the transfer data from this prototype studied, the unique physical characteristics of the filaments (e.g., controlled physical dimensions), and the absence of biological activity of similar glass filaments/fibers indicate that biologically significant exposure to the Eclipse smoker does not occur.

Expert Panel Report on R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company's Eclipse Cigarettes Published in Peer-Reviewed Scientific Journal

Fri, 27 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

The report of an expert scientific panel that has evaluated the data on Eclipse cigarettes has been published in Inhalation Toxicology (Vol. 12, Supplement 5, October 2000), a leading, peer-reviewed scientific journal. Eclipse is a cigarette that produces smoke by primarily heating, rather than burning, tobacco. It was introduced by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (RJRT) in test market in Dallas/Fort Worth in April. The chairman of the scientific panel is Dr. Bernard M. Wagner, an emeritus research professor of pathology at New York University Medical Center who has served as a member of the Committee on Toxicology of the National Academy of Sciences. In 1999, at the request of RJRT, Dr. Wagner assembled the panel to evaluate, in an objective and critical manner, the extensive body of data generated by RJRT scientists, independent laboratories, and university scientists regarding the chemistry and biology, including human studies, of the Eclipse cigarette.

Smokers balk at new cigarette touted as more healthful

Tue, 24 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

Allen says he was convinced enough by the health claims to give Eclipse a try. In accepting a carton of the cigarettes at the request of a reporter, he had to promise to set aside his usual brand, Merit Ultra Light, and try to smoke Eclipse exclusively for one week. That's how long the manufacturer thinks it takes for a motivated smoker to adjust to the new brand. . . Smokers can't look to the federal Food and Drug Administration for help because the agency has no control over tobacco products. Ironically, they might tune in to the very organizations that are trying to get them to quit smoking.The American Heart Association and other health groups have released a study of Eclipse that challenges its claim that smoke from the new brand contains fewer cancer-causing chemicals than other ultra-light brands. In response, the company said it stands by its own tests that indicate cigarettes may be safer when the tobacco is heated rather than burned. . . Not true, responds Seth Moskowitz, the company spokesman. "If someone wants to quit, we encourage them to quit." It took only 14 hours to persuade Allen to quit smoking Eclipse. His brief experiment convinced him that a so-called healthier cigarette wasn't necessarily a good-tasting cigarette. He described it as tasting like burning plastic and burning paper. . . Ellen Savage, a 30-year-old waitress, bowed out of her effort to smoke Eclipse after she had tried less than a pack. "To smoke these for a week would take discipline," says Savage, a smoker for 10 years. "If I had that kind of discipline, I wouldn't be smoking."

EDITORIAL: Safe cigarettes?: Despite RJR's claim, there's no such animal

Tue, 10 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

Less risk than other cigarettes? Well, if RJR considers incredibly poor health as opposed to almost certain death to be less of a risk, it has a point-an almost imperceptible point that it is hoped will be lost on anyone considering lowering their risk from death to deathly ill. . . Like the heart folks say, there's no safe cigarette-regardless of what nicotine pushers would have us believe.

New Study Casts Doubts on Health Claims About Eclipse

Wed, 04 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

Massachussetts Department of Public Health Letter to the Federal Trade Commission download (193K .pdf)

Public Health Groups' Letter to the Food and Drug Administration download (96K .pdf)

Public Health Groups' Letter to the Federal Trade Commission download (87K .pdf)

Why FDA? download (24K .pdf)

The Multistate Settlement Agreement Does Not Eliminate the Need for FDA Authority Over Tobacco download (27K .pdf)

RJR faults study of Eclipse cigarettes: Science is incomplete in report that found high toxin levels, company says

Thu, 05 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

''The smoke-chemistry comparisons that are being reported by some public-health organizations represent just a few small pieces of a very large puzzle,'' said Gary Burger, the executive vice president of research and development at RJR. ''We don't believe valid scientific conclusions can be drawn from such a limited set of data.'' . . Burger said that RJR's scientific method, which includes biological, toxicological and human tests, is more reliable than the Labstat procedure in determining Eclipse's reduced risks. RJR's research found that Eclipse cigarettes produce 70 percent fewer DNA-damaging chemicals than full-flavor, low-tar and ultralow-tar cigarettes. Company tests conducted at the University of Nebraska Medical Center have shown that smokers switching to Eclipse had 46 percent less bronchial inflammation and 36 percent less inflammation of the lower lung than when smoking their usual brands. In addition, mouse skin-painting studies show that Eclipse tar produces fewer skin tumors than tar from low-tar cigarettes. The science has been reviewed by an independent scientific panel, Burger said, and its report will be published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal within the next month. The panel's chairman, Bernard Wagner, has been a paid RJR scientific consultant during the last 10 years.

Mass. study, foes challenge Eclipse cigarette claim

Wed, 04 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

Gary Burger, R.J. Reynolds' executive vice president of research and development, said the company's conclusions are backed by scientific research, including human testing and independent verification. He also said the Massachusetts study used only a limited set of data to draw its conclusions. ``Extensive testing of Eclipse has shown that, even under very intense puffing conditions, the smoke is primarily water and glycerin, while the smoke of other cigarettes is primarily tar,'' Burger said in a statement.

New Scientific Study Contradicts R.J. Reynolds' Claims That Eclipse Is A "Reduced-Risk" Cigarette

Wed, 04 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

The American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society, and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids joined Connolly in releasing the study and said it demonstrated the need for Congress to grant the FDA full authority over tobacco manufacturing, marketing and sales, including health claims. . . "This study validates what we already knew to be true -- RJR's Eclipse cigarette is nothing more than a cancer-causing nicotine delivery device," said Dr. John R. Kelly, Ph.D., national volunteer, Chairman of the Board of the American Cancer Society. . . "In the absence of an independent government agency with the authority to verify these health claims, the tobacco industry's customers and potential customers are essentially human guinea pigs in a deadly science experiment," Myers said. "Past experience with so-called 'reduced-risk' products show that they turn out to be marketing frauds aimed at getting more people to start and continue a lethal habit that kills 400,000 Americans each year."

American Heart Association Condemns Health Claims of RJR's "Safer" Eclipse Cigarette

Wed, 04 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

"The independent scientific study conducted by the Massachusetts' Department of Public Health, which shows that smoking an Eclipse cigarette produces greater amounts of carbon monoxide and, in some cases, more carcinogenic nitrosamines and other lethal components compared to two other ultralight brands already on the market, emphasizes yet again the need for Congress to give the FDA full regulatory authority to regulate the tobacco industry," Wheeler said. He added, "Without FDA regulatory oversight to verify health claims, RJR and other cigarette makers are free to make these snake-oil claims about their deadly products." . . "Obviously, judging by this study, smoking an Eclipse cigarette is not the next best thing to quitting as RJR has promoted, but is one of the best ways to wind up dead from heart disease and stroke," Wheeler said. He added, "RJR should discontinue making false health claims about Eclipse and pull this dangerous and deceptive product off the market. If it does not, it's time for the FDA and the FTC to take immediate action. The FDA should assert immediate authority over Eclipse as it has done over other products for which health claims are made. The FTC should also follow suit and take action against RJR for false and deceptive advertising."

Eclipse In Shadows?: RJR's 'Safer' Cigarette Found to Have High Levels of Carcinogens

Wed, 04 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

In response to the results, the Massachusetts health department contacted the Food and Drug Administration, the Federal Trade Commission and the Massachusetts Attorney General asking them to investigate the safety claims being made by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. of Winston-Salem, N.C. on its Web site and in ads. One claim, for example, the firm makes is that Eclipse may present less risk of cancer compared to other cigarettes. The groups hope this report will spark an immediate governmental review of the product and its removal from the marketplace. “We want to see independent regulatory bodies review the scientific research in a comprehensive way,” says Dr. Greg Connolly, director of the Massachusetts Tobacco Control Project, who initiated the research. . . The results, released today, say Eclipse had equivalent amounts of nicotine and higher amounts of known cancer-causing chemicals than the other products: The Eclipse contained 734 percent more acetaldehyde and 475 percent more acrolein, two carcinogens, than the Now cigarette. . . But RJR Reynolds defends its product. “Under every testing regimen we have used, the smoke from Eclipse is chemically much simpler than that of other cigarettes, including ultra-low tar cigarettes,” Gary T. Burger, executive vice president of research and development, said in a statement responding to the Canadian findings. Burger said his company has done animal and human tests showing a dramatic difference in toxicity, and will report those results in a peer-reviewed scientific journal within the month.

'Safer' Cigarette May Have Toxins

Wed, 04 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

Anti-smoking groups said Wednesday they want R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. to stop test-marketing its experimental cigarette after an independent study found that Eclipse, touted as safer than ordinary cigarettes, poses many of the same health risks. The company refused, said its testing supports the claims, and questioned the conclusions of the study commissioned by the state of Massachusetts, contending they were drawn from limited data. . . Two of the most potent carcinogens, Benzo(a)pyrine, or BaP, and NNK, were found at roughly the same levels as in Brown & Williamson's Carlton King Size Soft Pack and Eclipse, but were far lower in Now King Size. Gary T. Burger, RJR's executive vice president of research and development, said the "comparisons do not, in any way, change the fact that an extensive battery of scientific tests indicates that Eclipse cigarettes may present smokers with less risk of certain smoking-related diseases than other cigarettes."

'Non-burning' cigarette no healthier, study says / Finds high levels of some toxins

Wed, 04 Oct 2000 04:00:00 GMT

The tobacco maker says the Eclipse cigarette is ''the next best choice'' to quitting, and is 64 to 87 percent less carcinogenic than ultralights. But state lab tests show that when compared to RJR's own low-tar Now King Size Hard Pack ultralights, Eclipse has 734 percent more acetaldehyde and 475 percent more acrolein, two cancer-causing agents. ''This is truly astonishing,'' said the DPH commissioner, Dr. Howard Koh. ''There is no such thing as a safe cigarette. It is an oxymoron. These health claims by RJR are so blatantly false.'' RJR, in a statement, disputed the state's findings, saying the tests are not valid because they involved ''a limited set of data.'' . . Koh, along with three national tobacco control groups, is also asking the Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Drug Administration to investigate the advertising claims by RJR.