US: Smoking now more likely to give you lung cancer

A UCSD Med School professor says smoking cigarettes today is twice as likely to give you lung cancer as it was in the 1960s. The study by professor emeritus David Burns compared U.S. lung cancer death rates over time. It determined that the risk of lung cancer has doubled, over the past 40 years, for people smoking the same number of cigarettes.

One reason for this is the increased use of filtered cigarettes. These cigarettes deliver just as much nicotine and tar. But smokers draw on them harder to get their fix. That pulls carcinogens further into the lungs, causing a greater variety of cancers. Burns also says the modern process of curing tobacco in the U.S. creates a cancer-causing chemical called nitrosamine. He found countries with less of this chemical in their cigarettes have lower rates of some cancers.

A tobacco-industry spokesman points out that Burns's research is unpublished. Burns says his study will be published soon and he hopes the industry will react to it then.

Source: KPBS, 18 May 2009
Link: http://tiny.cc/VHy4O

Scotland: Smoking kills six times more than accidents

Six times more Scots die from smoking than from accidents, murder, suicide, falls and poisoning combined. Edinburgh-based anti-smoking organisation ASH Scotland revealed the shocking figures as it called for greater restrictions on tobacco advertising.

Chief executive Sheila Duffy said: "Figures for Scotland show that smoking-related diseases kill six times as many people as accidents – including traffic accidents, homicide, suicide, falls and poisoning put together. Stopping blatant advertising has not stopped the tobacco companies. The marketing and promotion of tobacco is still done through large displays that take pride of place in every corner shop, petrol station and supermarket."

Source: The Scotsman, 18 May 2009
Link:  http://tiny.cc/RKGAr

Cigarette causes bedroom blaze

Firefighters in Essex tackled a bedroom fire caused by a cigarette not being put out properly on Saturday night. Crews from Canvey and Hadleigh tackled the flames at the two-storey house on Genep Road, Canvey, when they were called out at 7.26pm. They wore four sets of breathing apparatus and one hose reel to put out the blaze by about 8am.

Sub officer Kevin Hercock said: "Incidents like this show the danger people face if they do not make sure that all smoking materials are properly extinguished. It is vital that smokers ensure their cigarettes are fully out and that they regularly empty their ashtrays and never smoke in bed. The property had no working smoke alarms so the man who lives there is lucky this did not happen while he was asleep because he would have had no warning that there was a fire in his home at all and could have suffocated on the smoke."

Source: This is Total Essex, 18 May 2009
Link: http://tiny.cc/NpwzO

US: E-Bay bans e-cigarette sales

Ebay, the online auction site, has banned the sale of e-cigarettes.The e-cigarette, also know as an electronic cigarette, or e-cig, is a new type of smoking device that is becoming more and more popular since the smoking ban. E-cigarettes are a method to enjoy nicotine/and smoking supposedly without the harmful toxins and chemicals associated with traditional cigarettes.(Although there has yet to be any research into this).

Because this e-cigarette isn't really a cigarette one would expect that the usual "smoking rules" dont apply but eBay claims it violates their alcohol and tobacco policy. Ebay does not permit listings for most alcoholic beverages and tobacco products on their U.S. website. This includes cigarettes, cigars, and smokeless tobacco. In addition, non-U.S. members are not allowed to sell alcohol to an eBay member who is located in the United States.

Ebay States: "Because of various regulatory issues, cigarettes, cigars, and smokeless tobacco products are not allowed on eBay. Please note that these items are not allowed whether or not they contain actual tobacco."

Source: Article Dashboard, 19 May 2009
Link:  http://tiny.cc/BmgP5

US: Smoking bans do not causes job loss, study

Clean indoor air policies - bans on smoking - do not lead to a reduction in hospitality jobs, U.S. researchers have found. Lead author Elizabeth Klein of Ohio State University in Columbus examined employment trends over three years in eight Minnesota cities with different types of clean indoor air policies and two cities with no laws restricting smoking. Of the smoking policies studied, some were comprehensive bans prohibiting smoking everywhere, while others banned smoking in most public places and businesses, but exempted bars.

"In the end we can say there isn't a significant economic effect by type of clean indoor air policy, which should give us more support for maintaining the most beneficial public health policies," Klein said in a statement. "The public health benefit clearly comes from a comprehensive policy where all employees are protected from exposure to environmental tobacco smoke."

Secondhand smoke exposure increases non-smokers' risks of developing lung cancer, heart disease, respiratory conditions and other diseases, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has said. Fifteen states and Puerto Rico have comprehensive laws prohibiting smoking in the workplace, restaurants and bars, the American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation said.

The finding is scheduled to be published in the June issue of the journal Prevention Science.

Source: UPI, 18 May 2009
Link:  http://tiny.cc/G2V7n