HEADLINES

• Electronic cigarettes: A safer way to puff
• Lancashire: Illegal cigarette sales down
• Scotland: 2012 smoking campaign launched
• Canada: ‘I was told to move to the back of Ottawa bus because I smelt of cigarettes’
• 60% of Bulgarians back full smoking ban

• Electronic cigarettes: A safer way to puff

  E-cigarettes could save hundreds of thousands of lives, according to their makers. So why are many health experts opposed to them?

  E-cigarette firms in the UK are regulated by Trading Standards, but because they contain nicotine and deliver a drug, critics say the devices should be treated as a medicine and approved by the MHRA before they are considered safe to use.

  "The ideal scenario is for smokers to stop and never go back to tobacco again," says Amanda Sandford of the public health charity Action on Smoking and Health (ASH). But she admits that "harm-reduction is something we will have to embrace" because "it's not enough to say that smokers should simply just quit". She says "e-cigarettes clearly offer an alternative to smoking", but also voices concerns over the chemicals some may contain and the long-term effects.

  Sandford says a comparison can be made between the arguments for and against NRT treatments for smokers and those that flared when methadone was introduced in the UK as a safer alternative to heroin. But, as she also points out, there is little time to argue over the morality of harm reduction. Smoking, unlike heroin, kills more than 80,000 people in the UK every year on average.

  Source: The Independent - 17 January 2012
  Link: http://ind.pn/yAOcS5

• Lancashire: Illegal cigarette sales down

  The number of smokers using illegal cigarettes has dipped after a crackdown.

  Two reports have found a fall in the amount of tobacco sold across Lancashire, as well as an increase in awareness of the problem.

  According to research, the number of people in Lancashire who buy illegal tobacco has fallen from 23% in 2009 to 15% in 2011.

  It also found awareness of illegal tobacco has increased from 44% to 67%, while the likelihood of reporting sellers has risen from 26% to 31%.

  Source: Lancashire Evening Post - 17 January 2012
  Link: http://bit.ly/ABS1Ab

• Scotland: 2012 smoking campaign launched

  A new campaign has been launched encouraging smokers to quit with the help of Scotland’s national stop smoking helpline. Smokeline 0800 848484 offers people tips on how to kick the habit geared towards their personal circumstances and needs.

  Source: Iewy - 16 January 2012
  Link: http://bit.ly/wym4cP

• Canada: ‘I was told to move to the back of Ottawa bus because I smelt of cigarettes’

  A female passenger claims she was asked to move to the back of an Ottawa bus by the driver because she smelt of cigarettes.

  OC Transpo, the group responsible for Ottawa’s transport system, continues to investigate after Misty Parent complained that she felt “harassed” by the alleged incident.

  Source: National Post - 13 January 2012
  Link: http://natpo.st/ywDExW

• 60% of Bulgarians back full smoking ban

  60% of Bulgarian citizens are in favor of the full smoking ban in enclosed public spaces that is expected to be introduced later in 2012, a poll conducted by Gallup has revealed.

  The poll has also shown that the number of smokers in the country has decreased by 2%. Approximately 39% of all Bulgarians were smokers in 2011, compared with 41 in 2010.

  Source: Novinite - 13 January 2012
  Link: http://bit.ly/wCFM4Q