Ghana to ban tobacco smoking in public

Mr Abraham Dwumah-Odoom, Deputy Minister of Health, announced that a ban tobacco smoking at public places in November. He said the initiative would help reduce the health risks that tobacco smoking exposed non-smokers to and its resultant impact on the economy.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has attributed five million deaths each year to tobacco related illness, whilst the figure is expected to reach over eight million by 2030 with 80 per cent of these deaths occurring in developing countries.

Mr Dwumah-Odoom said: "The extremely negative impact of tobacco on health now and in the future is the primary reason for going explicit and strongly supporting tobacco control on a world wide basis." He acknowledged that although there were likely to be challenges in the implementation of the ban, the Ministry hoped to strengthen and formalise its links with relevant institutions and organisations to facilitate the implementation of the ban.

Mr Dwumah-Odoom added, "We believe the power of in-country coordinating networks of employers, unionised groups, directors and managers of public places cannot be underestimated in helping to build a collaborated strategy in protecting citizens from the hazards of smoking and secondhand smoke."

Mr Oscar Bruce, Vice President for the Coalition of NGOs in Tobacco Control, said passive smoking was a major public health threat and the only way to protect the public was through comprehensive smoke free air laws.

He said the International Labour Organisation estimates also showed that 200,000 workers died as a result of exposure to passive smoking in the workplace.

Passive smokers are at a greater risk of getting lung cancer, coronary heart diseases and even cardiac death. A Ghana Health Service survey conducted in 2005 also revealed that one-third of Junior High School pupils were exposed to the smoke.

Source: Ghana Web, 28 October 2008
Link: http://tinyurl.com/6l5gnm

32% of Americans are nicotine dependent

Nicotine dependence has reached a 15-year high, with nearly 75 percent of people currently seeking tobacco-dependence treatment categorised as highly nicotine dependent. New research, presented at CHEST 2008, the 74th annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), reports that nicotine dependence severity has increased 12 percent between 1989 and 2006, while the proportion of people classified as highly nicotine dependent has increased 32 percent.

The study's lead author, David P. Sachs, MD, of the Palo Alto Center for Pulmonary Disease Prevention, was not surprised by the findings. "After treating tobacco-dependent patients for the last 25 years and conducting many tobacco dependence clinical treatment trials, I began to see a shift in severity of physical, nicotine dependence that required me to develop more intensive treatment plans for my patients," he said.

Although Dr. Sachs and his team identified a definite increase in tobacco dependence, the reason for this increase is still unclear.

"Previous studies suggest that individuals who have less severe nicotine dependence have already been successful at quitting smoking, which leaves a larger percentage of patients who are highly nicotine dependent among the greater tobacco-using community." Smokers who are highly addicted to nicotine may not even realise they are addicted but see their tobacco use as a "bad habit," and, consequently, never attempt smoking cessation or try to quit on their own.

"A person cannot know what his or her blood pressure is without measuring it. Similarly, a cigarette user cannot know how severe his or her nicotine dependence is without measuring it," said Dr. Sachs. "Many factors can identify someone as highly nicotine-addicted; however, as a quick 'bedside' test, if you light up your first cigarette within the first 30 minutes of awakening, you are most likely highly nicotine dependent."

The results of the study suggest that more individualized tobacco-dependent treatments are needed to address the increase in addiction severity.

To address the increase in nicotine dependence, Dr. Sachs suggests that physicians may need to increase pharmacologic doses and duration of medication use, try different combinations of pharmacotherapy, and place more emphasis on minimizing withdrawal symptoms in order to avoid treatment failure.

Source: News-Medical.Net, 28 October 2008
Link: http://tinyurl.com/6p32af

Britain has toughest smoking controls in Europe, finds new report

A major survey revealed today shows that Britain has the toughest smoking controls in Europe. The survey, which ranked 27 European countries according to tobacco control measures, was carried out by the EU’s ‘Help – For a Life Without Tobacco’ campaign. 

Britain was ranked second, behind Ireland, in 2005, but has scored higher in subsequent years. The high rating has been put down to the elevated cost of tobacco in the UK, and better treatment programmes.

Countries were scored in six categories, including price, public place bans, public information campaign spending, advertising bans, health warnings and treatment.

Professor Luke Clancy, director general of the Tobacco Free Research Institute, insisted the three-year study showed stricter measures are still needed. "There is no room for complacency. We need to keep a focus on young people so that we can help them not to start smoking and encourage smokers to quit."

Professor Clancy added, "Budget price hikes do help and a ban on ten-packs have also been useful, but there is still a great deal more work to be done to de-normalise smoking."

The research marks the end of a three-year campaign that saw 340,000 Europeans tested for carbon monoxide levels - the simplest and most effective tool for measuring the effects of smoking on active and passive smokers. The test involved blowing into a CO tester, and answering questions about smoking habits.

The results revealed that the average rate for non-smokers in Europe is 3.2 for men and 3.8 for women. People smoking ten cigarettes a day in the EU have an average COex (carbon monoxide parts per million exhaled) rate of 14.2 and this rises to 18.5 for those smoking 15 a day and 22.1 for those on 20 a day.

8.5 COex is considered a safe level for people living in urban areas.

One major result for the EU has been the 28% decrease in COex in non smokers since the beginning of 2006 and the study showed that countries with fewer tobacco controls had higher COex rates among non-smokers.

Rates for different forms of smoking were similar throughout Europe (93% cigarettes) though Ireland had an unusually high rate of pipe-smoking (4%) against the EU (1%), and a low rate for roll-up smoking (1%) compared with an EU figure of 4%.

Norma Cronin, Health Promotion Manager for Tobacco Control at the Irish Cancer Society said: 'This campaign comes to a close in 2008 and it is our hope that the EU will build on the momentum created by ‘Help – For a Life Without Tobacco’.

"Smoking continues to be one of the major health challenges facing the world, and it is encouraging to see the EU taking an active role in relation to smoking."

The anti-smoking campaign said its survey was aimed at addressing one of the main causes of avoidable death in the EU.

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a toxic gas linked to combustion. It is colourless and odourless, and is produced by vehicle exhausts and coal-burning stoves as well as smoking cigarettes, cigars and pipes.

CO paralyses red blood cells and prevents them from binding the oxygen essential for the life of the organs including the heart and brain. Cardiac efficiency levels fall and the risk of blood clots forming increases. 

Source: Daily Mail, 29 October 2008
Link: http://tinyurl.com/5pcdfn

Smokers to be banned from becoming foster parents

Smokers could be completely banned from fostering children under controversial proposals.

Redbridge in East London is believed to the first council in the country to consider a total ban on foster carers who smoke, no matter how old the child they want to look after.

It says the tough rules are needed to protect children from the effect of passive smoking, and to stop them taking up the habit from carers who they see as their role models.

At present, most councils refuse to place children under five with people who smoke. Many, like Redbridge Council, also do not allow smokers to look after disabled children or those with respiratory problems.

But if the new rules are backed by a council meeting next week, from 2010 there will be an absolute ban on new foster carers who smoke, no matter how old the child is.

Social workers will discuss smoking with all existing carers during their annual review, and those wishing to give up will receive advice on quitting.

Michael Stark, the council's cabinet member for children's services, said: 'While the council recognises the proven skills and abilities of its carers who smoke, it is essential that the health of our looked-after children is protected."

"Unlike adults, children have little choice about whether or not to be in a smoky environment, so I hope the council will take the decision to limit the harmful effects this drug can have."

Director of tobacco studies at Cancer Research UK, Professor Richard West, said: 'Smoking around children can exacerbate asthma, increase childhood cancers and make them more susceptible to respiratory problems. Fostering is a difficult area and, although it sounds harsh, I think this ban is a good thing. On balance you have to go with the health of the child.'

The Fostering Network, which represents most of Britain's carers, advised that a ban should only be placed on carers of children under the age of five - advice that most councils follow.

Hazel Halle, director of services for the Fostering Network, said: "The dangers of passive smoking are well documented, and foster carers should not smoke in front of children - their health must always come first."

"It's great that Redbridge Council is confident it can recruit enough non-smokers, although we wouldn't want to see potentially good foster carers put off from applying purely because they have the occasional cigarette."

A spokesman for the Department for Children, Schools and Families said: 'The health and well-being of looked-after children is paramount and we do, of course, want children to be protected from the harmful effects of smoking."

Source: The Daily Mail, 30 October 2008
Link: http://tinyurl.com/6rum8x

Nigeria adjourns $45 billion tobacco lawsuit to January

A Nigerian court has adjourned a 5.3 trillion naira lawsuit brought by the government against three tobacco firms until January so the prosecution can serve court papers on one of the defendants.

Nigeria is seeking a sum, roughly twice the size of its annual budget, in damages for public health costs from British American Tobacco, Philip Morris International and Nigerian firm International Tobacco Ltd.

The Nigerian government has accused the firms of targeting young smokers by promoting the sale of individual cigarettes and has asked the court to ban cigarette sales to under-18s and curb advertising aimed at young people.

It is seeking 4.8 trillion naira as preventive damages for future expenses for cigarette-related diseases, 136 billion naira as compensation to sick youths, 250 billion naira in restitution and 130 billion naira as punitive damages.

Government lawyer Dapo Akinoshun told a Federal High Court in Abuja that Swiss-based Philip Morris had rejected court papers sent on three occasions by courier. Efforts to publish the summons in a Swiss newspaper had also failed, he said.

Philip Morris could not immediately be reached for comment.

Akinoshun appealed to be able to serve the papers through the Swiss embassy in Nigeria as a last resort.

"The application is granted. The defendant should be served through the diplomatic channel," Judge Adamu Bello ruled, adjourning the case to January 19.

It is the second time that the court has had to adjourn the case so that lawyers could serve Philip Morris.

The case is inspired by U.S. lawsuits in the 1990s that led to multibillion dollar settlements by the tobacco industry.

Source: Reuters News, 29 October 2008
Link: http://tinyurl.com/65e7fe