Tobacco Articles: state AZ

Drinking, Smoking Often Intertwine for Students

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Mark and Mimi Nichter have published a series of articles recently about the smoking behaviors of college students, offering important insights about smoking related to drinking, gender and stress. Interventions against alcohol consumption targeting college-age students have tended to focus solely on drinking without including any discussion of tobacco. This is concerning to University of Arizona anthropologists Mimi Nichter and Mark Nichter, whose research indicates that, among other key findings, college students in social settings often smoke and drink in tandem. As a consequence of years of research, the two conclude that preventative interventions should be structured in a way that drinking and smoking are addressed simultaneously.

Student group pushing for ASU smoking ban

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Courtney Roake, member of the Health and Counseling Student Action Committee, spoke last week at a town hall discussion at Arizona State University's Tempe campus about making all ASU campuses tobacco-free. "We want to inform students that smoking is not the social norm," Roake said. HCSAC has spoken to ASU President Michael Crow about the issue, and he recommended the group submit a referendum, Roake said. The students have collected more than 3,500 signatures from classmates, faculty and visitors to support the policy. "I did have smokers sign the petition," Roake said. "Many, many smokers."

Man injured in fire at north-side apartment complex

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

A 51-year-old man who was smoking while using a home oxygen tank suffered life-threatening injuries in a fire at a north-side apartment Wednesday evening, authorities said. The fire was reported at 5;19 p.m. at the Fox Point Apartments in the 3700 block of North Campbell Avenue near East Prince Road, said Capt. Tricia Tracy, a Tucson Fire Department spokeswoman. . . . Fire investigators attributed the cause of the fire to the man smoking while using his oxygen tank, he said.

Push for tobacco-free campus gains ground

keshoult@asu.edu ( Katie Shoultz) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

What started as one student’s effort to create a tobacco-free campus has grown into a University-wide discussion that could generate a smoking ban as early as April. Philosophy senior Chad Williams began formulating plans for ASU to go tobacco free after joining the University’s Health and Counseling Student Action Committee last year. “When I became involved with the club, they encouraged me to pick a health topic I was passionate about and pursue it,” Williams said. “As a former smoker, I am interested in helping other students become aware of the effects of tobacco and reduce its use on campus.”

Country Inns & Suites By Carlson(SM) Opens in Tucson, Ariz. : New Hotel Implements Green Initiatives

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

The new 79-room Country Inn & Suites By Carlson(SM) Tucson City Center today announced it is open for business. Conveniently located off of I-10, the hotel is only minutes from the University of Arizona. The 100 percent non-smoking hotel features the brand's new interior design package along with an outdoor pool, whirlpool and fitness center and meeting space for up to 35 people

Smoking Hubbub Extinguished

Thu, 11 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

bars would prove to be the most resistant of establishments to the Smoke-Free Arizona Act, according to Laura Oxley, public information officer for ADHS, in an e-mail. Things have found balance since. The Smoke-Free Arizona Act bans smoking in or within 20 feet of most public places, and wasn't a particularly easy transition for some bars that did not have outdoor patio seating for their smoking customers to use. Many bars attempted to undermine the smoking ban for the sake of business, which resulted in fines ranging from $50 to $300 for individuals and $5,000 for establishments. Some establishments that lost customers still harbor strong feelings about the ban, but for one smoking employee of the patio-inclusive Doc and Eddy's Sports Bar in Tempe, "[The ban's] not really a big deal anymore." And, really, it's not. The fines have resonated with the rebels, patios have accommodated the smokers, and the 2008 Behavioral Risk Factor Survey, conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, showed a 20 percent drop in the number of Arizonans who smoke. There still isn't full compliance with the ban

Clinical Trials Update: Feb. 9, 2010: * Smoking Cessation * COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 05:00:00 GMT

This year-long study will evaluate an investigational vaccine to aid in smoking cessation. To qualify, you must be aged 18 to 65, and have smoked more then 10 cigarettes a day for the past year. The research site is in Boise, Idaho. . . .

This long-term study will evaluate a drug to treat COPD. If you qualify, you will receive lab tests, study-related physicals, pulmonary function tests, and a stipend for participation. The research site is in Tempe, Ariz.

More Than $2 Million In NIH Grants To Barrow Researchers For Nicotine Studies

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Four scientists at Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center have been awarded more than $2.2 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to research the effects of nicotine and develop new tobacco-related drug therapies. The grants will fund three separate research projects at the Phoenix-based institute in the next several years. Ronald J. Lukas, PhD and Vice President of Research at Barrow, is one of the world's leading experts on nicotine and has spent much of his research career studying its impact. Lukas' research lab, shared by Paul Whiteaker, PhD, is the main recipient of the funding. The Barrow laboratories of Jie Wu, MD, PhD, and Yongchang Chang, MD, PhD, also will receive funding from the grants. Lukas said these Barrow-led projects also will benefit a number of other researchers around the country who will receive collaborative NIH funding of more than $5 million for their participation in the studies. . . . The newly-funded Barrow studies range from understanding how nicotine may reduce depression, to how it creates addiction, to how nicotine addiction is related to lung cancer. "These studies have implications for nicotine dependence, tobacco addition, lung cancer and mood disorders,"

Scottsdale-Based E-Cigarette Company Gets Big Win in Federal Court

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 05:00:00 GMT

A Scottsdale company that distributes "e-cigarettes," the robotic and arguably equally harmful alternative to traditional cigarettes, got some good news today from a federal judge: The Food and Drug Administration has to back off in blocking imports of the devices. The judge ruled in favor of Sottera, the distributor of the NJOY "e-cigarette," saying the FDA must not try to regulate the devices more stringently than it does ordinary tobacco products -- because the "e-cigarettes" are basically just a modern-day tobacco product. The hoopla began when the FDA tried to over-regulate the devices, claiming they were a "drug-device combination," not a tobacco product. Because of the distinction, the FDA was confiscating the devices when they came into U.S. ports from foreign manufacturers for more than a year.

VIDEO: Banner Good Samaritan Goes Smoke-Free: Staff, patients no longer to smoke on property

Mon, 28 Dec 2009 05:00:00 GMT

PHOENIX - First it was bars and restaurants. Then colleges started to follow suit, and now, hospitals. Banner Good Samaritan is the latest valley hospital to ban smoking on their property -- not inside, not outside, not even in the parking lot. Starting Jan.1, doctors, staff, and patients will no longer be permitted to smoke on hospital grounds. Smokers will have to take a walk to light up. Some Banner employees are upset about the tobacco-free policy. "The entire campus will be tobacco free which means every square in of property in order to smoke someone will really have to leave the property," says Colleen Hallberg, from Banner Good Samaritan.

Electronic cigarettes under fire for targeting Arizona kids

/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=25790@knxv.dayport.com — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 05:00:00 GMT

In a hidden camera investigation, the ABC15 Investigators found Arizona electronic cigarette kiosk salesmen selling their nicotine device to kids. It is not illegal. But, there is controversy over what the devices do to our bodies. Amir Hakak operates electronic cigarette kiosks in four Valley malls. He said the e-cigarette helps people kick the real habit. . . . So then why are these e-cigarettes sold in a variety of flavors at kiosks in the mall -- where teens regularly hangout? That's the question John Wickwire asked when his 17-year-old son came home from the mall. “He come (home) excited and saying, 'Oh yeah, there's this new thing. It's so cool. They have these flavors,' and I'm like, 'what is it?' Oh, it's this new kind of cigarette,” said Widkwire. “We think this is cutting edge,” said former Arizona congressman, Matt Salmon, who helped push through one of the first public smoking bans. . . . Using a hidden camera, we went to a "Smoking Everywhere" kiosk in the Arrowhead Mall in Glendale. Not only did the salesman make health claims saying the E-cigarette helps with influenza and pneumonia, but he sold it to our underage shopper.

Clinical Trials Update: Dec. 3, 2009: COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:00:00 GMT

To participate in this 52-week study, candidates must be 40 or older and have moderate-to-severe COPD. The res

The truth about electronic cigarettes

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 05:00:00 GMT

The country that gave us killer dog food, corrosive drywall, lead-based toys, and poisonous toothpaste. Now has a new surprise for you. It's a mystery chemical...completely unregulated. You buy it, vaporize it, and suck it into your lungs. And it's right here in Tucson where some fear your kids could get hold of it. Nine on your side investigator Dan Spindle takes a look. Smokers, lighting up in the middle of the Foothills Mall, it raises more than a few eyebrows...... But what looks like smoke, is actually a vapor ... Like the kind you might see coming out of a fog machine. This vapor is from the latest electronic cigarette to hit the market which has the green light to be sold at malls all over Arizona. These e-cigarettes save smokers the smell and high prices of traditional smokes.

Clinical Trials Update: Oct. 28, 2009

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT

COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) This 10-week study is for people aged 40 to 80 who have been diagnosed with COPD. The research site is in Phoenix, Ariz. More information Please see http://www.clinicalconnection.com/clinical_trials/condition/copd.aspx. ----- Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) This study is for people who have chronic stable heart failure and have an ejection fraction of less than 40 percent. Participants will have an echocardiogram and will be asked to stay overnight. Compensation for time and travel is available up to $2,750 if you qualify. The research site is in Tustin, Calif. More information Please see http://www.clinicalconnection.com/clinical_trials/condition/heart_failure.aspx.

Navajo lawmakers to debate monument, smoking bills: Navajo lawmakers mull bills to seek control of national monument, ban smoking in public places

xxx@xx.xxx (Felicia Fonseca, Associated Press Writer) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) -- Navajo lawmakers will have a crowded agenda when they meet this week for their fall session, and many of the bills have been considered before. Those include legislation to seek full control of Canyon de Chelly National Monument, to outlaw piracy, to ban the use of tobacco in public places . . . During the same session, delegates failed to override a veto of a bill to ban smoking and chewing tobacco in public places on the reservation. Navajo President Joe Shirley Jr. rejected the measure because he feared it would inhibit gambling revenue.