Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Kicking off Saturday and taking place once a month thereafter, protesters against a recently enacted smoking ban on Boston public property will descend upon the city's storied Boston Common as a show of defiance. A Facebook event page aptly titled Boston Common Smoke Out/Vape Up! is
encouraging smokers to disobey the municipal ordinance and light up
their cigs, stogies, joints and blunts in the center of one of The Hub's
most iconic landmarks.
But they shouldn't. And neither should you.
As a former cigarette smoker and proponent of individual liberties, I find the notion that people would try to promote what's been scientifically proven to cause cancer and a slew of other fatal diseases – redundant almost to the point of annoyance – a deeply misguided and warped view of one's constitutional rights.
While yes, I believe to a rather liberal extent that people should be able to ingest whatever they please and degrade their bodies in the most disgusting of manners as they so choose, it seems they fail to realize the direct endangerment of those around them which should be paramount.
I very much enjoy walking through Boston Common. The amount of history and identity amassed throughout the years over its sprawling 50 acres is like nothing else in the country. Adjacent to the land is Beacon Hill, the Boston Public Gardens line another border and an eerie though lionized cemetery calls an isolated corner home. It goes without saying that Boston Common is a picture of illustrious beauty.
That beauty is lost when the pathways and greenways are littered with cigarette butts and blunt wrappers. In fact, its embarrassing to present such a grimy space to those who travel the world to view what they expect to be a place of purity and antiquity.
The last thing I want while enjoying all of these intricacies is to start jonesing. That's what happens sometimes when I jaunt along through, soaking up all of the happenings while imagining those of yore, as I pass someone and catch a crave-inducing whiff of the nasty looking cig hanging from their lips.
Even more disheartening is seeing young parents strolling along with their little tykes having to make their way through a cloud of carcinogens when all they want to do is enjoy the natural amenities afforded by our fare city. According to the American Cancer Society, cigarette smoke "contains more than 7,000 chemical compounds. More than 250 of these chemicals are known to be harmful, and at least 69 are known to cause cancer." Lucky Strike cigarettes.
I put it to you, smoker: as you light up and take another drag of poison, is your protest really worth the harm being brought upon those dispassionate about your habit?
According to the demonstration's Facebook page, the goal of the event is to challenge the law simply because they find it to be "unenforceable at best and selectively enforceable at worst." Nowhere is mentioned rights, liberties or the contention of governmental overstepping. Simply, the founders of this event "are outraged to learn that there will now be a $250.00 fine for smoking outdoors in a Park in Boston."
I have no problem with peaceful protests. In fact, I agree when Thomas Jefferson referred to general rebellion as a natural manure for the tree of liberty. But that is only true when it serves the common good. Smoking on public property is simply self-serving.
Nobody's telling you not to smoke. Go right ahead. Enjoy systematically losing minutes off your life with every puff. Take it to the sidewalk, street corners, rooftops, wherever. But don't subject your neighbors and community to the same demise. Have a little self-respect. Have respect for your fellow man. And keep in mind that the law is meant to have your health and best interests at heart.
But they shouldn't. And neither should you.
As a former cigarette smoker and proponent of individual liberties, I find the notion that people would try to promote what's been scientifically proven to cause cancer and a slew of other fatal diseases – redundant almost to the point of annoyance – a deeply misguided and warped view of one's constitutional rights.
While yes, I believe to a rather liberal extent that people should be able to ingest whatever they please and degrade their bodies in the most disgusting of manners as they so choose, it seems they fail to realize the direct endangerment of those around them which should be paramount.
I very much enjoy walking through Boston Common. The amount of history and identity amassed throughout the years over its sprawling 50 acres is like nothing else in the country. Adjacent to the land is Beacon Hill, the Boston Public Gardens line another border and an eerie though lionized cemetery calls an isolated corner home. It goes without saying that Boston Common is a picture of illustrious beauty.
That beauty is lost when the pathways and greenways are littered with cigarette butts and blunt wrappers. In fact, its embarrassing to present such a grimy space to those who travel the world to view what they expect to be a place of purity and antiquity.
The last thing I want while enjoying all of these intricacies is to start jonesing. That's what happens sometimes when I jaunt along through, soaking up all of the happenings while imagining those of yore, as I pass someone and catch a crave-inducing whiff of the nasty looking cig hanging from their lips.
Even more disheartening is seeing young parents strolling along with their little tykes having to make their way through a cloud of carcinogens when all they want to do is enjoy the natural amenities afforded by our fare city. According to the American Cancer Society, cigarette smoke "contains more than 7,000 chemical compounds. More than 250 of these chemicals are known to be harmful, and at least 69 are known to cause cancer." Lucky Strike cigarettes.
I put it to you, smoker: as you light up and take another drag of poison, is your protest really worth the harm being brought upon those dispassionate about your habit?
According to the demonstration's Facebook page, the goal of the event is to challenge the law simply because they find it to be "unenforceable at best and selectively enforceable at worst." Nowhere is mentioned rights, liberties or the contention of governmental overstepping. Simply, the founders of this event "are outraged to learn that there will now be a $250.00 fine for smoking outdoors in a Park in Boston."
I have no problem with peaceful protests. In fact, I agree when Thomas Jefferson referred to general rebellion as a natural manure for the tree of liberty. But that is only true when it serves the common good. Smoking on public property is simply self-serving.
Nobody's telling you not to smoke. Go right ahead. Enjoy systematically losing minutes off your life with every puff. Take it to the sidewalk, street corners, rooftops, wherever. But don't subject your neighbors and community to the same demise. Have a little self-respect. Have respect for your fellow man. And keep in mind that the law is meant to have your health and best interests at heart.
Monday, January 20, 2014
Ohio State University Marks Anniversary Of Report That Linked Cigarettes To Death
Representatives from The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer
Center and other officials commemorated the 50th anniversary of a
Surgeon General report that linked smoking to lung cancer and chronic
diseases. Parliament Aqua Blue
In 1963, 42 percent of Americans smoked - virtually everywhere - airplanes, offices, and restaurants.
But then Surgeon General Luther Terry wrote that smoking cigarettes could kill you.
Today, just 19 percent of adults smoke, and the rate of deaths has dropped dramatically.
The rate is especially impressive among young people.
"Just last month, we learned that smoking among 8th, 9th and 10th graders was below 10 percent," said Robin Koval, President and CEO of the American Legacy Foundation. "That is an amazing achievement."
The Ohio State University became a "smoke free" campus this week.
A new American Medical Association report shows that since 1964, eight million people have been spared a premature death because they never smoked, or quit smoking early - and they gained, on average, almost 20 years of life.
However, it isn't all good news.
Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death.
Nearly a half million Americans die each year due to smoking, and eight million people are living with at least one serious chronic disease caused by tobacco.
In 1963, 42 percent of Americans smoked - virtually everywhere - airplanes, offices, and restaurants.
But then Surgeon General Luther Terry wrote that smoking cigarettes could kill you.
Today, just 19 percent of adults smoke, and the rate of deaths has dropped dramatically.
The rate is especially impressive among young people.
"Just last month, we learned that smoking among 8th, 9th and 10th graders was below 10 percent," said Robin Koval, President and CEO of the American Legacy Foundation. "That is an amazing achievement."
The Ohio State University became a "smoke free" campus this week.
A new American Medical Association report shows that since 1964, eight million people have been spared a premature death because they never smoked, or quit smoking early - and they gained, on average, almost 20 years of life.
However, it isn't all good news.
Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death.
Nearly a half million Americans die each year due to smoking, and eight million people are living with at least one serious chronic disease caused by tobacco.
Illegal tobacco seller Roger Gerrey sold cigarettes to children
A man who turned his Devon home into a shop selling illegal cigarettes to school children has been spared a jail sentence.
Roger Gerrey, 65, from Lemon Place, Newton Abbot, was selling fake brands to children, Exeter Crown Court heard.In two raids on his house nearly £13,000 in cash and £14,000 worth of tobacco were discovered.
Gerrey was given a 12 month sentence, suspended for two years, after admitting seven offences.
He admitted two offences under the trademark laws, three under consumer protection laws and two of selling tobacco to children. Continent Superslims
The court heard that Gerrey's house was raided by Devon trading standards officers in June 2013 when 602 packets of rolling tobacco and 555 packets of 20 cigarettes worth about £14,000 were found, along with £11,870 in cash.
Gerrey admitted that the money came from selling illegal tobacco, but despite knowing that he was under investigation he continued to sell illegal tobacco.
The money seized from Gerrey was forfeited by the court.
Roger Croad, Devon councillor with responsibility for trading standards, said Gerrey had been convicted of a "serious criminal offence".
China, world's leading tobacco user, moves to ban indoor public smoking
China, the world's largest tobacco consumer, is aiming to ban indoor smoking in public areas by the end of the year.
About one in three
cigarettes smoked in the world is in China, according to the World
Health Organization. And more than half of Chinese men smoke, according
to the Global Adult Tobacco Survey in 2010.
Although the nation's
health ministry issued guidelines in 2011 to ban smoking in places like
hotels and restaurants, they haven't been "strictly enforced," according to Xinhua, China's state-run news agency.
The China's National Health and Family Commission is now working on a tobacco control law with clear punishments, according to Xinhua.
Davidoff iD Orange
China's smoking habit
The country's health
authorities estimate over a million deaths from tobacco-related diseases
every year. The WHO warns that if tobacco use is not decreased in
China, these deaths will increase to 3 million by 2050.
Last month, Chinese government officials were told not to smoke in public places such as hospitals, public transport or schools to set a good example for the public.
The latest moves by the
Chinese government on tobacco are "hopeful," said Dr. Judith Mackay, the
senior adviser at the World Lung Foundation, who examines tobacco
issues in China.
About 32 Chinese cities have passed their own rules to restrict public smoking, she added.
"China stands on its own
in the magnitude of the problem," said Mackay. "Unless there is change
in China, we won't proceed further in reducing the tobacco epidemic in
the world."
Tobacco use in China has far-reaching consequences, she said.
"This isn't a health
problem. It's a huge economic problem. There's all these things ranging
from medical and health care costs, the costs to the families and
there's the cost of secondhand smoke."
Success against smoking: Your Say
Fifty years ago, a Surgeon General's report concluded tobacco causes lung cancer, launching a public health campaign that has cut smoking rates in half. Comments from Facebook are edited for clarity and grammar:
Nothing ticks me off more than people who try to tell others how to live. Yes, there are health issues related to smoking, but we should have the right to live our lives the way we see fit. Too many people want to force what they consider to be "the right way to live" on others.
— Colin Yapp
Fewer people smoking is better for them and for all of us. The tobacco industry is still taking action to keep its business alive. Big Tobacco companies will lie to hide the bad effects of their products and try everything to increase the number of people hooked on them.
— Modesto Rodriguez Montes
Raising taxes on tobacco successfully reduces consumption. A high tax may be necessary to achieve that effect, but that would also help the government imposing the tax. There are also follow-on effects from fewer smokers: Fewer lost workdays due to illness and fewer cancer deaths. Tobacco is addictive, but when confronted with higher prices, some will quit, others will moderate their intake and fewer will begin. Very few tax increases merit my support. This one does.
— Marvin McConoughey
Cigarettes are a normal part of living for many Americans. And many people who do smoke are the least financially well off. Taking more money from poor people via a tax on tobacco is not the answer; it just hurts those people on a day-to-day basis.
Nothing ticks me off more than people who try to tell others how to live. Yes, there are health issues related to smoking, but we should have the right to live our lives the way we see fit. Too many people want to force what they consider to be "the right way to live" on others.
— Colin Yapp
Fewer people smoking is better for them and for all of us. The tobacco industry is still taking action to keep its business alive. Big Tobacco companies will lie to hide the bad effects of their products and try everything to increase the number of people hooked on them.
— Modesto Rodriguez Montes
Raising taxes on tobacco successfully reduces consumption. A high tax may be necessary to achieve that effect, but that would also help the government imposing the tax. There are also follow-on effects from fewer smokers: Fewer lost workdays due to illness and fewer cancer deaths. Tobacco is addictive, but when confronted with higher prices, some will quit, others will moderate their intake and fewer will begin. Very few tax increases merit my support. This one does.
— Marvin McConoughey
Cigarettes are a normal part of living for many Americans. And many people who do smoke are the least financially well off. Taking more money from poor people via a tax on tobacco is not the answer; it just hurts those people on a day-to-day basis.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Stop-smoking battle still raging 50 years after surgeon general published health risks
More than four in 10 American adults were smokers — and so were a lot of kids — 50 years ago when the surgeon general first announced that smoking kills. The report "Smoking and Health" said bluntly that smoking cigarettes causes lung cancer and is linked to other serious diseases.
In the half-century since that report came out on Jan. 11, 1964, an estimated eight million deaths have been prevented by stop-smoking efforts, according to a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
About 42 percent of American adults smoked in 1964, and that number has plummeted to about 18 percent. The reduction in tobacco use is believed to account for a substantial portion of gains made in life expectancy in America, which has risen by five years since that first report on tobacco dangers. But despite widespread knowledge of these dangers, along with increased taxes, advertising bans, warning labels on tobacco products and laws limiting smoking, some haven't quite managed to kick butts. That fact bothers a coalition of anti-tobacco nonprofits that this week called for renewed, vigorous efforts to reduce tobacco use. One of the groups, The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, points out that nearly 44 million American adults and 3.6 million adolescents and children smoke. The four conditions most linked to tobacco use — heart disease, cancer, lung ills and stroke — are still the top causes of death in the United States. There are two things blocking progress, said Dr. Les Beitsch, chairman of Medical Humanities and Social Sciences for the College of Medicine at Florida State University. First, nicotine is incredibly addictive to those who use the product. Second, corporations are addicted to the massive profits they make off that first addiction, he said. "We’ve made enormous progress, but we can’t declare victory when tobacco is still the No. 1 cause of preventable deaths in the United States," Vince Willmore, the spokesman for The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, told the Deseret News. "We know how to win this, and it cannot take another 50 years. We cannot afford another 50 years of death and disease caused by tobacco." The toll The vast majority of smokers began at or before they were 18 years old. Tobacco-Free Kids notes that each day more than 3,000 American children try cigarettes for the first time. Recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention statistics reported that about 443,000 Americans die prematurely each year from smoking-related causes. Tobacco use costs about $96 billion in the United States in health care bills and $97 billion in lost productivity. Worldwide, tobacco is believed to kill almost six million people a year. "Tobacco is, quite simply, in a league of its own in terms of the sheer number and varieties of ways it kills and maims people," Dr. Thomas Frieden, CDC director, wrote in a JAMA Commentary. "Images of smoking in movies, television and on the Internet remain common; and cigarettes continue to be far too affordable in nearly all parts of the country." A coalition of organizations believes implementing proven programs and policies can end tobacco's stranglehold on smokers. In a joint statement Wednesday, they asked for "bold action" by government to achieve three goals: Reduce smoking rates to less than 10 percent within 10 years; protect all Americans from secondhand smoke within five years; and "ultimately eliminate the death and disease caused by tobacco use." The groups in the coalition are the American Academy of Pediatrics; American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network; American Heart Association; American Lung Association; Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights; and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and Legacy. Experts would also like tobacco companies to cough up the money to fund anti-tobacco efforts, or at least stop contributing to the toll. The coalition highlighted Federal Trade Commission data showing that the tobacco industry will spend the equivalent of $1 million each hour this year to market cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products. The companies, it said, fight efforts to limit marketing, design their products to appeal to kids and aim to create and sustain addiction to nicotine.Glamour Super Slims Lilac
Some progress has been impressive, but efforts to curb tobacco use have been hampered by tobacco manufacturers, Beitsch said, adding that it earlier appeared the tobacco industry "was going to work with us, even with the master settlement of the 1990s. But they never really honored commitments to tell the truth and work in an honorable way." It is hard to make progress, he noted, when a "so-called partner doesn't really intend to collaborate." Bright patches Beitsch sees definite bright spots in anti-smoking efforts, though. Very few health practitioners smoke. Some states, including Utah, have already met goals set for 2020 in terms of reducing tobacco use. Florida is an example of a state that reached goals for reducing tobacco use in middle schools and high schools. The high school smoking rate peaked at 36.4 percent in 1997, but was down to 18.1 percent in 2011, according to the Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted by CDC. The recent Monitoring the Future Survey found smoking among high school seniors cut in half since 1997, down to 16.3 percent in 2013. American adults have also cut the number of cigarettes they smoke. Adult per capita consumption has gone from a high of 4,345 in 1963 to 1,232 in 2011. A study in the American Journal of Public Health estimated that without the anti-tobacco efforts of the past 50 years, per capita cigarette use would have been five times higher in 2011 than it was. Researchers say smoking by men declined an average of 25 percent in 187 countries from 1980 to 2012, and by 42 percent among women. But with population growth, the raw number of smokers globally has grown, and rates remain high in some countries. For men, smoking is very common in Russia, Indonesia and Armenia, for instance, while women smoke in higher-than-average numbers in Chile, France and Greece. While the United States was first to sound the alarm about tobacco dangers, it lags behind many countries, Beitsch said. Read more at http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865594016/Stop-smoking-battle-still-raging-50-years-after-surgeon-general-published-health-risks.html#zr6tkQsqJguWoryP.99
About 42 percent of American adults smoked in 1964, and that number has plummeted to about 18 percent. The reduction in tobacco use is believed to account for a substantial portion of gains made in life expectancy in America, which has risen by five years since that first report on tobacco dangers. But despite widespread knowledge of these dangers, along with increased taxes, advertising bans, warning labels on tobacco products and laws limiting smoking, some haven't quite managed to kick butts. That fact bothers a coalition of anti-tobacco nonprofits that this week called for renewed, vigorous efforts to reduce tobacco use. One of the groups, The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, points out that nearly 44 million American adults and 3.6 million adolescents and children smoke. The four conditions most linked to tobacco use — heart disease, cancer, lung ills and stroke — are still the top causes of death in the United States. There are two things blocking progress, said Dr. Les Beitsch, chairman of Medical Humanities and Social Sciences for the College of Medicine at Florida State University. First, nicotine is incredibly addictive to those who use the product. Second, corporations are addicted to the massive profits they make off that first addiction, he said. "We’ve made enormous progress, but we can’t declare victory when tobacco is still the No. 1 cause of preventable deaths in the United States," Vince Willmore, the spokesman for The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, told the Deseret News. "We know how to win this, and it cannot take another 50 years. We cannot afford another 50 years of death and disease caused by tobacco." The toll The vast majority of smokers began at or before they were 18 years old. Tobacco-Free Kids notes that each day more than 3,000 American children try cigarettes for the first time. Recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention statistics reported that about 443,000 Americans die prematurely each year from smoking-related causes. Tobacco use costs about $96 billion in the United States in health care bills and $97 billion in lost productivity. Worldwide, tobacco is believed to kill almost six million people a year. "Tobacco is, quite simply, in a league of its own in terms of the sheer number and varieties of ways it kills and maims people," Dr. Thomas Frieden, CDC director, wrote in a JAMA Commentary. "Images of smoking in movies, television and on the Internet remain common; and cigarettes continue to be far too affordable in nearly all parts of the country." A coalition of organizations believes implementing proven programs and policies can end tobacco's stranglehold on smokers. In a joint statement Wednesday, they asked for "bold action" by government to achieve three goals: Reduce smoking rates to less than 10 percent within 10 years; protect all Americans from secondhand smoke within five years; and "ultimately eliminate the death and disease caused by tobacco use." The groups in the coalition are the American Academy of Pediatrics; American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network; American Heart Association; American Lung Association; Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights; and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and Legacy. Experts would also like tobacco companies to cough up the money to fund anti-tobacco efforts, or at least stop contributing to the toll. The coalition highlighted Federal Trade Commission data showing that the tobacco industry will spend the equivalent of $1 million each hour this year to market cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products. The companies, it said, fight efforts to limit marketing, design their products to appeal to kids and aim to create and sustain addiction to nicotine.Glamour Super Slims Lilac
Some progress has been impressive, but efforts to curb tobacco use have been hampered by tobacco manufacturers, Beitsch said, adding that it earlier appeared the tobacco industry "was going to work with us, even with the master settlement of the 1990s. But they never really honored commitments to tell the truth and work in an honorable way." It is hard to make progress, he noted, when a "so-called partner doesn't really intend to collaborate." Bright patches Beitsch sees definite bright spots in anti-smoking efforts, though. Very few health practitioners smoke. Some states, including Utah, have already met goals set for 2020 in terms of reducing tobacco use. Florida is an example of a state that reached goals for reducing tobacco use in middle schools and high schools. The high school smoking rate peaked at 36.4 percent in 1997, but was down to 18.1 percent in 2011, according to the Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted by CDC. The recent Monitoring the Future Survey found smoking among high school seniors cut in half since 1997, down to 16.3 percent in 2013. American adults have also cut the number of cigarettes they smoke. Adult per capita consumption has gone from a high of 4,345 in 1963 to 1,232 in 2011. A study in the American Journal of Public Health estimated that without the anti-tobacco efforts of the past 50 years, per capita cigarette use would have been five times higher in 2011 than it was. Researchers say smoking by men declined an average of 25 percent in 187 countries from 1980 to 2012, and by 42 percent among women. But with population growth, the raw number of smokers globally has grown, and rates remain high in some countries. For men, smoking is very common in Russia, Indonesia and Armenia, for instance, while women smoke in higher-than-average numbers in Chile, France and Greece. While the United States was first to sound the alarm about tobacco dangers, it lags behind many countries, Beitsch said. Read more at http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865594016/Stop-smoking-battle-still-raging-50-years-after-surgeon-general-published-health-risks.html#zr6tkQsqJguWoryP.99
50 years of progress cuts smoking rates in half — but can we ever get to zero?
Smoking rates cut in half. Eight million lives saved. More than
800,000 fewer lung cancer deaths. Fifty years after the U.S. Surgeon
General first warned about the dangers of smoking, the benefits of
quitting have never been clearer.
Yet 18 percent of the population still smokes. Nearly 2,000 teenagers take up the habit every day and tobacco companies advertise candy-flavored tobacco products with impunity. Is it possible this is the best the United States will ever do?
Health experts are convinced it isn’t — and they point to maps that rank states and regions by smoking status as proof. A look at a county-by-county breakdown of who smokes and where makes it clear that there are opportunities to get smoking rates way down, they say.
Kentucky has the most smokers — more than 28 percent of the population smokes there, compared to just 11 percent in Utah, which has the lowest rates, and double the 14 percent in California. And when you overlay those smoking maps with details of rates of heart disease, stroke and cancer, it’s equally clear that there are still plenty of lives to be saved by trying.Rothmans Blue
How?
“(With) taxes, strong smoke-free laws and fully funding state tobacco prevention programs,” says Dr. Mariell Jessup, president of the American Heart Association. “These measures can reduce the number of adult smokers to less than 10 percent of the population in 10 years.”
Also, raising the legal age to buy tobacco products to 21 would go a long way to stopping kids from ever getting addicted in the first place, the Heart Association, American Lung Association, American Cancer Society, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and other groups agree.
“We do it with booze yet we don’t do it with cigarettes, when cigarettes kill about 10 times more people than alcohol does,” says Dr. Michael Fiore of the University of Wisconsin’s Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention.
Smoking is often just another marker for social and economic disparities, Fiore adds. “Fewer than 10 percent of college graduates smoke,” Fiore points out. But 35 percent of people who never graduated from high school do.
“Two things will solve this issue over time and eliminate tobacco use. One is hard-hitting public policy. At the same time, we need the ready availability of treatments for smokers.”
A 50 year public health battle
It was Jan. 11, 1964 when then-Surgeon General Dr. Luther Terry held a news conference to announce that smoking causes cancer and probably heart disease, too. It was a time when close to half of Americans smoked — including Terry himself — and it set off a 50-year battle between regulators and the tobacco industry.
Yet 18 percent of the population still smokes. Nearly 2,000 teenagers take up the habit every day and tobacco companies advertise candy-flavored tobacco products with impunity. Is it possible this is the best the United States will ever do?
Health experts are convinced it isn’t — and they point to maps that rank states and regions by smoking status as proof. A look at a county-by-county breakdown of who smokes and where makes it clear that there are opportunities to get smoking rates way down, they say.
Kentucky has the most smokers — more than 28 percent of the population smokes there, compared to just 11 percent in Utah, which has the lowest rates, and double the 14 percent in California. And when you overlay those smoking maps with details of rates of heart disease, stroke and cancer, it’s equally clear that there are still plenty of lives to be saved by trying.Rothmans Blue
How?
“(With) taxes, strong smoke-free laws and fully funding state tobacco prevention programs,” says Dr. Mariell Jessup, president of the American Heart Association. “These measures can reduce the number of adult smokers to less than 10 percent of the population in 10 years.”
Also, raising the legal age to buy tobacco products to 21 would go a long way to stopping kids from ever getting addicted in the first place, the Heart Association, American Lung Association, American Cancer Society, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and other groups agree.
“We do it with booze yet we don’t do it with cigarettes, when cigarettes kill about 10 times more people than alcohol does,” says Dr. Michael Fiore of the University of Wisconsin’s Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention.
Smoking is often just another marker for social and economic disparities, Fiore adds. “Fewer than 10 percent of college graduates smoke,” Fiore points out. But 35 percent of people who never graduated from high school do.
“Two things will solve this issue over time and eliminate tobacco use. One is hard-hitting public policy. At the same time, we need the ready availability of treatments for smokers.”
A 50 year public health battle
It was Jan. 11, 1964 when then-Surgeon General Dr. Luther Terry held a news conference to announce that smoking causes cancer and probably heart disease, too. It was a time when close to half of Americans smoked — including Terry himself — and it set off a 50-year battle between regulators and the tobacco industry.
Fewer Americans see cigarette smoking as a major public health problem
It’s been 50 years since the U.S. Surgeon General issued a groundbreaking report
on the dangers of smoking. The report opened the way for decades of
measures to curb tobacco use —measures that helped save an estimated 8
million lives over that time span, according to a study published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association.Davidoff iD Ivory
About half (53%) of Americans still see cigarette smoking as an extremely or very serious public health problem, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted last November. But the public now sees it as less of a problem than a number of other public health issues like cancer and obesity, and less of a problem than it did in 2004 when 72% rated it as serious in an ABC News/Time poll.
Asked whether the U.S. is making progress in dealing with cigarette smoking in 2013, 45% said it was, while 39% said things were about the same. Just 13% saw the efforts to deal with smoking as losing ground. By comparison, 35% saw the country losing ground in dealing with mental illness and 34% said the same about the issue of obesity
About half (53%) of Americans still see cigarette smoking as an extremely or very serious public health problem, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted last November. But the public now sees it as less of a problem than a number of other public health issues like cancer and obesity, and less of a problem than it did in 2004 when 72% rated it as serious in an ABC News/Time poll.
Asked whether the U.S. is making progress in dealing with cigarette smoking in 2013, 45% said it was, while 39% said things were about the same. Just 13% saw the efforts to deal with smoking as losing ground. By comparison, 35% saw the country losing ground in dealing with mental illness and 34% said the same about the issue of obesity
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