Imperial Tobacco opposes proposals to ban display of tobacco products

Imperial Tobacco Group has reiterated its opposition to proposals to ban the display of tobacco products at the point of sale in shops in the UK.

Gareth Davis, chief executive of Imperial Tobacco, said: "We do not want children to smoke and support practical measures to reduce youth smoking. However, we have not seen any credible evidence to support the claim that young people start smoking or adult smokers continue to smoke as a result of the display of tobacco products.

"We will continue to strongly oppose proposals to restrict or prohibit the display of tobacco products, which would be anti-competitive and further fuel the illicit trade in tobacco products."

Source: Datamonitor, 10 December 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/WP3LC

American Cancer Society launches Quitline program in India

The American Cancer Society has announced that it is launching its Quitline® service in India. The program will be provided through multi-national employers with operations in India. The Society's Quitline program is a clinically proven, free telephone-based counseling service that provides counseling and pharmacological service to more than 100 employers and health plans and 13 states in the U.S. Since its inception in 2000, Quitline has provided counseling support to more than 380,000 individuals. Research has shown that participating in telephone counseling and using medications can more than double a smoker's chance of quitting for good. 

"We are pleased to be the first provider of a tobacco cessation counseling service in India, and we look forward to providing the supportive services that help tobacco users to quit," said Terry Music, chief mission officer, American Cancer Society. "India became smoke-free on October 2, making this a perfect time for employers to offer Quitline services to their workers. We know that smoke-free laws can help those who use tobacco quit, and in combination with Quitline, we can help individuals succeed in becoming tobacco-free."

Quitting smoking is hard, and support makes it more likely that smokers who quit will remain tobacco-free. The American Cancer Society's Quitline has a proven track record with helping people quit in the United States. Studies have shown that more than 40 percent of people who were contacted six months after completing the American Cancer Society Quitline program remained smoke-free, which puts the Society's quit rates among the highest of those providing this service.

Quitting smoking can greatly improve health. According to the U.S. Surgeon General, people who quit, regardless of age, live longer than people who continue to smoke, and smokers who quit before age 50 cut their risk of dying in the next 15 years in half compared to those who continue to smoke. Cigarette smoking is by far the most important risk factor in lung cancer. Quitting smoking substantially decreases the risk of lung cancer as well as laryngeal, esophageal, oral, pancreatic, bladder and cervical cancers. Quitting also lowers risk for other major diseases including heart and stroke.

India provides a unique challenge regarding tobacco use and quitting - while as many as one-third of Indians smoke tobacco in several forms, a great many Indians also use a far greater array of smokeless tobacco products. In fact, a recent report of the Indian government cited tobacco use prevalence (in all its forms) at nearly half of all adult males and about 14 percent of women. The effect of these various forms of tobacco use in India has not only caused lung cancer incidence to grow significantly in recent years but has also caused India to have the highest rates of oral cancer in the world. The Quitline will be addressing these India-specific issues as it develops it treatment protocols in collaboration with its multi-national employer partners.

Source: mediLexicon, 11 December 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/rGB28

The impact of the 2006 Scottish smoke-free legislation on sales of nicotine replacement therapy

Abstract

This study used over-the-counter (OTC) sales of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) to investigate the impact of the introduction of smoke-free legislation in Scotland in March 2006 on smoking cessation behaviour. The time series of NRT sales (units and value) in Scotland from 2004 to 2006 were compared with the same period for the rest of the UK, and analysed using an ARIMA time series model. There was a significant increase in units and value of NRT sales in Scotland in the first 6 months of 2006 (p<=0.001), apparent from January and prior to the introduction of the smoking ban, with no comparable increase for the rest of the UK. There was no significant increase in NRT sales for the second half of 2006. These data suggest an increase in smoking cessation behaviour in the period immediately before the introduction of smoke-free legislation, but this was not sustained beyond the first few months of the post-legislation period.

Source: Lewis, S.A. et al. Nicotine & Tobacco Research, Volume 10, Issue 12 December 2008 , pages 1789 - 1792
Link: http://tiny.cc/6FTGB

Philip Morris appeals law banning tobacco sales at pharmacies in San Francisco

Philip Morris USA has filed a notice of appeal with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. The appeal follows an earlier order in which a federal judge turned down the company's bid for preliminary injunction against a new law in the city which bans tobacco sales by pharmacies.

The ban on pharmacies selling tobacco products in San Francisco came into effect on October 1, 2008. This law bans tobacco sales by pharmacies, but exempts supermarkets and stores such as Costco that contain pharmacies.

In its lawsuit, the company claims that the ban violates its free speech rights by preventing it from advertising in pharmacies and also challenges the prohibition of tobacco product sales in pharmacies.

CBS Broadcasting quoted Jack Marshall, Philip Morris USA's spokesperson, as saying: "Although it's called a ban on sales, the purpose and effect of the ordinance is to suppress communication directed to adult smokers in violation of our constitutional rights."

Judge Claudia Wilken, who turned down the company's request for an injunction, said: "Nothing in the ordinance restricts Philip Morris's ability to advertise its products in pharmacies."

Source: Datamonitor, 09 December 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/sNj4k

Written Ministerial Statements: Health - Tobacco Legislation

Alan Johnson (Secretary of State, Department of Health; Kingston upon Hull West & Hessle, Labour):

Smoking remains the single greatest cause of preventable death and is one of the primary causes of health inequality in the United Kingdom. The Government have an important responsibility to protect children and young people from smoking. We remain particularly concerned that in Great Britain, nearly seven in ten adults who have ever smoked regularly say that they started smoking regularly before they were 18 years old.

Over the past decade, the Government have achieved a great deal in tobacco control. To build on this success in promoting public health, the Government have committed to develop a new national tobacco control strategy.

To guide the development of this new strategy, the Department published the consultation on the future of tobacco control in May 2008 to enable stakeholders and the wider public to provide input from the earliest stages. Today we published a report summarising the more than 96,000 responses the Department received. The report has been placed in the Library and copies are available to hon. Members from the Vote Office.

The Government now intend to bring forward primary legislation in two areas of tobacco control to protect children and young people from smoking.

We will bring to an end the practice of exposing children to the ubiquitous promotion of tobacco products in retail environments by removing the display of tobacco at the point of sale. According to Cancer Research UK, since the ban on advertising of tobacco introduced by the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion Act 2002, display of tobacco in retail environments has become the primary source of tobacco marketing for young people. We believe that taking action on display of tobacco at the retail point of sale should not represent a significant financial burden on retailers.

We also plan further controls on the sale of tobacco from vending machines, by seeking powers to either remove machines or require age restrictions to limit the easy access young people have to this source of tobacco. Vending machines are one of the most common and easily accessible sources of cigarettes for young people.

Before bringing legislation on point of sale display and tobacco vending machines into force, the Government will work closely with retailers and other stakeholders to develop regulations setting out detailed requirements. We will aim to ensure requirements do not place unnecessary costs or burdens on the retail industry. We will also ensure ample lead-in time before any legislation is commenced to support businesses to prepare.

As part of their consultation, the Government also sought views on whether to bring forward innovative proposals on tobacco packaging. We believe that more needs to be done to develop our understanding of how the packaging of tobacco products influences smoking by both adults and young people. The Government will therefore keep tobacco packaging under close review.

The significant health risks associated with smoking are well documented. We believe these proposals are an important, effective and proportionate step in protecting children and young people from the dangers of tobacco use.

Source: Hansard. 09 December 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/DDNkv

Tobacco display ban - health wins the day!

ASH welcomes the government's announcement that tobacco products are to be removed from public view as part of a range of measures to protect children from tobacco marketing. Although it is disappointing that tobacco sales will still be permitted from vending machines, overall tobacco marketing will be virtually eliminated by the display ban, protecting children and smokers trying to quit. This measure will put England amongst a small group of countries that have already passed such legislation. Evidence from other jurisdictions with such legislation already in place suggests that this will reduce the numbers of young people taking up smoking, costs to businesses can be minimal, and that no shops have been forced to close as a result.

ASH Director, Deborah Arnott said: "The Government is to be congratulated on getting rid of these deadly displays, temptingly placed to attract children right by the sweet counter in corner shops, newsagents, supermarkets and petrol stations throughout the land. Claims that businesses will fail because of this measure are unfounded. In other countries which have brought in such measures they have been both popular and effective, without putting shops out of business."

ASH is also pleased that the government is taking seriously the proposal to require plain packaging of tobacco products and urges it to go farther and faster. Prohibiting retail display is only half the battle, to complete the job tobacco packaging must be standardised so all attractive and promotional aspects are removed, save for the brand name. The tobacco industry itself admits that the cigarette pack is "the communication life-blood of the firm…. the silent salesman", an essential weapon in the struggle to recruit smokers now traditional advertising, promotion and sponsorship is banned.

On vending machines ASH urges the government to go further and announce a complete ban, not just to further restrict access. The current guidelines are already supposed to ensure that tobacco vending machines are located only in places not routinely accessed by children such as pubs and clubs. However these have clearly failed since 14% of smokers under the age of 16 report that they usually purchase cigarettes from vending machines. Furthermore, there is no evidence that the modification of vending machines to 'child-proof' them is effective in stopping illegal sales.

"Further restricting access to vending machines as opposed to banning sales of tobacco products altogether is a half-baked measure. It will do little or nothing to reduce under-age smoking, whilst incurring additional costs to vending machine manufacturers."

Source: Medical News Today, 10 December 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/Lqtor

Vitamin E supplementation and pneumonia risk in males who initiated smoking at an early age: effect modification by body weight and dietary vitamin C

Abstract

BACKGROUND: We had found a 14% higher incidence of pneumonia with vitamin E supplementation in a subgroup of the Alpha-Tocopherol Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention (ATBC) Study cohort: participants who had initiated smoking by the age of 20 years. In this study, we explored the modification of vitamin E effect by body weight, because the same dose could lead to a greater effect in participants with low body weight.

METHODS: The ATBC Study recruited males aged 50-69 years who smoked at least 5 cigarettes per day at the baseline; it was conducted in southwestern Finland in 1985-1993. The current study was restricted to 21,657 ATBC Study participants who initiated smoking by the age of 20 years; the median follow-up time was 6.0 years. The hospital-diagnosed pneumonia cases were retrieved from the national hospital discharge register (701 cases).

RESULTS: Vitamin E supplementation had no effect on the risk of pneumonia in participants with body weight in a range from 70 to 89 kg (n = 12,495), risk ratio (RR) = 0.99 (95% CI: 0.81 to 1.22). Vitamin E increased the risk of pneumonia in participants with body weight less than 60 kg (n = 1054), RR=1.61 (1.03 to 2.53), and in participants with body weight over 100 kg (n = 1328), RR=2.34 (1.07 to 5.08). The harm of vitamin E supplementation was restricted to participants with dietary vitamin C intake above the median. CONCLUSIONS: Vitamin E supplementation may cause harmful effects on health in certain groups of male smokers. The dose of vitamin E used in the ATBC Study, 50 mg/day, is substantially smaller than conventional vitamin E doses that are considered safe. Our findings should increase caution towards taking vitamin E supplements. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00342992.

Source: Hemila, H. et al. Nutr J. 2008 Nov 19;7(1):33. [Epub ahead of print]
Link: http://tiny.cc/sJpk1

JTI opens three Munich lounges

Japan Tobacco International (JTI) is installing airport smoking lounges and areas at Munich Airport in Germany. This week JTI inaugurated three smoking lounges, a Camel Plaza and six smoking corners at Munich International Airport. Other airports that JTI is working with include Athens, Bali, Moscow, Zurich, Kiev, Ho Chi Minh City, Casablanca, Marrakech, Frankfurt, Agadir and Geneva.

“I think this new facility will be applauded by many people travelling from or via Munich, both smokers and non smokers,” says Fadoul Pekhazis, JTI’s president Middle East, near East, Turkey, Africa and Worldwide Duty Free. “JTI pioneered the concept of smoking lounges and smoking stations in 2003.”

JTI says that its smoking lounge concept features state-of-the-art units equipped with custom-designed ventilation systems.

By the end of 2008, JTI will have locations in 15 international airports with 46 lounges, 70 smoking cabins and over 60 smoking stations.

Pekhazis adds, “This is a win-win solution for all parties. The smoking public is looked after, non-smokers are not annoyed by tobacco smoke and the airport provides an excellent service to travellers.”

Source: Passenger Terminal Today, 02 December 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/Lqf8R

PQ: Smoking prevalence

John Bercow (Buckingham, Conservative): To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to reduce the prevalence of smoking.

Dawn Primarolo (Minister of State (Public Health), Department of Health; Bristol South, Labour): I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement issued on 9 December 2008, Hansard, column 46WS.by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health (Alan Johnson).

Source: Hansard. 11 December 2008 Column 237W
Link: http://tiny.cc/aayAI

MPs fall foul of 'dirty' tricks by tobacco giants

Britain's tobacco giants have been accused of 'dirty' tactics after it emerged they created a supposedly 'independent' campaign group for small retailers to lobby against government restrictions on the promotion of cigarettes in shops. The Save Our Shop campaign claimed proposals to remove large displays of cigarettes in stores would result in costly refits and see many small retailers go out of business.

Over the summer, MPs were inundated with postcards bearing the Save Our Shop campaign logo, urging them not to back the government's proposals, outlined last week by the Department of Health. The cards stated: 'As my local MP, I hope you will protect our independent local shops by opposing this proposal.' More than 100 MPs signed an early-day motion in Parliament agreeing with the proposal that any plan to sell cigarettes under the counter should be firmly 'evidenced-based', a key message pushed by the Save Our Shop campaign.

But it has now emerged many MPs were unaware the campaign was the brainchild of the Tobacco Retailers' Association (TRA), an offshoot of the Tobacco Manufacturers' Association, which represents the interests of three tobacco companies: BAT, Gallaher and Imperial Tobacco. The Save Our Shop campaign did little to make its links with the tobacco lobby apparent and its postcards bore no reference to the connection between it and the cigarette manufacturers. The TRA, which also spoke out against the proposals, did not publicise its links with the manufacturers' body, although the latter's website carries a small reference to the connection between the two organisations.

MPs have expressed dismay that the campaign had been orchestrated and funded by the tobacco companies. 'The early-day motion very carefully avoids any kind of hint of their support,' said Frank Cook, Labour MP for Stockton North, who signed up to it. 'It's a pretty dirty, surreptitious quest they're on.  As a result of what I now know, I've withdrawn my name from the motion.' Cook said withdrawing his name from the motion was not a signal he was turning his back on small retailers.

Deborah Arnott, chief executive of anti-smoking group ASH, accused the tobacco lobby of 'hiding behind the cloak of retailer respectability'. Arnott said: 'What this is really about is the continuation of a sleazy trade in a deadly drug that will kill one in two long-term users.'

Dr Janet Atherton, Chair of Smokefree North West, which works to tackle smoking among children and young people, said: 'Everyone had a right to be heard - nearly 60,000 members of the public in this region signed up for stronger measures. These people will feel a little cheated that the tobacco industry, when having its say, chose to do in such a misleading and dishonest way.'

The manufacturers' association had claimed there was no evidence to suggest putting cigarettes out of sight of consumers would impact on sales. It quoted evidence from Iceland suggesting there had been no change in consumption patterns since a similar measure was introduced there. '[The association] is opposed to tobacco display bans, which are not supported by robust evidence, will not achieve the stated public health benefit and will have serious unintended consequences,' its chief executive, Chris Ogden, said earlier this month.

But supporters of the government's plans accuse the manufacturers of deliberately ignoring evidence that the measure has had an effect on consumption among younger people. The Icelandic government has written to the manufacturers pointing out the proportion of 16-year-olds who smoked in Iceland dropped significantly after its ban on over-the-counter sales of tobacco.

Using 'front' organisations to lobby politicians is an established practice by tobacco firms. Cook said: 'They can't help themselves, they're so keen to preserve the profit margins they've enjoyed for decades that they resent any kind of attempt to curtail their activities.'

Source: The Observer, 14 December 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/Z7Dp2

Toxicity of Harm-Reduction cigarettes adversely impacts reproduction and prenatal development

Typically, tobacco companies market harm-reduction cigarettes as being safer than traditional "full-flavored" brands, leading many smokers to conclude that the use of harm-reduction brands lowers their exposure to toxicants. 

But a UC Riverside study now shows that smoke from these "light" or "low-yield" harm-reduction cigarettes retains toxicity and that this toxicity can affect prenatal development.

"Many chemicals found in harm-reduction cigarette smoke have not been tested, and some are listed by manufacturers as safe," said Prue Talbot, a professor of cell biology who led the study. "But our tests on mice clearly show that these chemicals adversely affect reproduction and associated development processes. The effects are likely to be the same in humans, in which case pregnant women would be particularly vulnerable to the effect of smoke from these cigarettes."

Talbot's research team used mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) as a model for pre-implantation embryos - embryos that have not yet implanted in the wall of the uterus - and compared the toxicity on these cells of cigarette smoke emanating from traditional and harm-reduction brands.

Further, they studied the effects on the mESCs of two kinds of cigarette smoke: mainstream smoke, which is smoke actively inhaled by smokers; and sidestream smoke, which is smoke that burns off the end of a cigarette.

They found that both kinds of smoke from traditional and harm-reduction cigarettes are toxic to pre-implantation embryos and can retard growth or kill embryonic cells at this stage of development. Equally surprising to them was their discovery that mainstream smoke and sidestream smoke from harm-reduction cigarettes are more potent than the corresponding smoke from traditional brands of cigarettes.

"This result was unexpected since harm reduction brands purportedly have lower concentrations of toxicants," Talbot said.

"Dr. Talbot's work significantly enhances our understanding of the harmful effects of smoking on very early pregnancy," said Olga Genbacev, a senior scientist in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at UC San Francisco, who was not involved in the research. "This study for the first time sends a clear message to nonsmoking women of reproductive age who are planning to become pregnant that they must avoid exposure to sidestream smoke."

Study results appear in the journal Human Reproduction (published online, Nov. 29). The hardcopy version of the research paper is scheduled to appear in January 2009.

"Clearly, the tobacco companies have not eliminated all toxins from harm-reduction brands of cigarettes," said Talbot, who also is the director of the UCR Stem Cell Center. "We found that both mainstream and sidestream smoke from traditional and harm-reduction cigarettes hindered the attachment of mESCs to extracellular materials. Such attachment is crucial to normal embryonic development. Moreover, cell survival and proliferation - also necessary for embryonic growth - were hindered as well."

The researchers' experiments on the mESCs showed, too, that on a per puff basis sidestream smoke was more potent than mainstream smoke in both traditional and harm-reduction brands of cigarettes.

"This may be because sidestream smoke is produced at a lower temperature and therefore contains higher concentrations of toxicants," Talbot said.

When she and her colleagues performed the experiments directly on pre-implantation mouse embryos that had been cultured for one hour in mainstream or sidestream smoke solutions from a harm-reduction brand, they found that the effect of smoke on the embryos was similar to the effect it had on the mESCs.

"This strongly supports our use of embryonic stem cells as a valuable and effective model to study embryo toxicity during pre-implantation development," said Sabrina Lin, a graduate student in the Cell, Molecular and Developmental Biology Program working towards her doctoral degree, and the first author of the research paper. "This means we can use human embryonic stem cells to draw conclusions about the effect of cigarette smoke on pre-implantation human embryos."

Source: mediLexicon, 09 December 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/Ykbjg

How does increasingly plainer cigarette packaging influence adult smokers’ perceptions about brand image? An experimental study

Background: Cigarette packaging is a key marketing strategy for promoting brand image. Plain packaging has been proposed to limit brand image, but tobacco companies would resist removal of branding design elements. 

Method: A 3 (brand types) x 4 (degree of plain packaging) between-subject experimental design was used, using an internet online method, to expose 813 adult Australian smokers to one randomly selected cigarette pack, after which respondents completed ratings of the pack.

Results: Compared with current cigarette packs with full branding, cigarette packs that displayed progressively fewer branding design elements were perceived increasingly unfavourably in terms of smokers’ appraisals of the packs, the smokers who might smoke such packs, and the inferred experience of smoking a cigarette from these packs. For example, cardboard brown packs with the number of enclosed cigarettes displayed on the front of the pack and featuring only the brand name in small standard font at the bottom of the pack face were rated as significantly less attractive and popular than original branded packs. Smokers of these plain packs were rated as significantly less trendy/stylish, less sociable/outgoing and less mature than smokers of the original pack. Compared with original packs, smokers inferred that cigarettes from these plain packs would be less rich in tobacco, less satisfying and of lower quality tobacco.

Conclusion: Plain packaging policies that remove most brand design elements are likely to be most successful in removing cigarette brand image associations.

Source: Wakefield, M.A. et al.  BMJ 2008; 17: 416-421
Link: http://tiny.cc/YNS2e

EDM 189 - point of sale display of tobacco products

Taylor, David

That this House welcomes the Government's announcement of legislation to prohibit point of sale display of tobacco products in the 2008 Queen's Speech; notes that the Department of Health estimates that this will lead to up to 2,800 fewer young people taking up smoking each year, saving many thousands of lives in the longer-term; and calls upon the Government to commit itself to open, full and genuine consultation with all affected and interested parties on the most effective means of implementation of this legislation, in line with its obligations under the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control which requires it to protect its public health policies from the commercial and vested interests of the tobacco industry.

Source: parliament.uk
Link: http://tiny.cc/v65BV

No smoking for President Obama

Barack Obama says you won't catch him lighting up a cigarette in the smoke-free White House.  "There are times where I've fallen off the wagon," the president-elect said when asked in a television interview whether he has kicked the habit. I've done a terrific job, under the circumstances, of making myself much healthier," he said. "And I think that you will not see any violations of these rules in the White House," he said on Sunday's Meet the Press on NBC.

Obama told the magazine Men's Health in an interview for its November issue that he wished he had more time for staying fit and that he still occasionally smoked a cigarette. Obama said in that interview that he had bummed a cigarette a couple of times during the campaign. "But I figure, seeing as I'm running for president, I need to cut myself a little slack," he said.

Source: News24, 07 December 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/AUHCG

Nicotine intake in cigarette smokers in England: Distribution and demographic correlates

Abstract

Documenting smoke intake by objective biochemical markers is important for quantification of exposure to toxins. The aim of this report is to show the most definitive distribution of the nicotine metabolite, cotinine, yet available from English smokers in the period before implementation of the legislation banning smoking in indoor public areas. A total of 6,423 cigarette smokers, ages 16 years and above, taking part in the Health Survey for England between 1998 and 2003 provided a saliva cotinine value. Data on cigarette consumption, age, gender, social class, deprivation (as indicated by manual or nonmanual occupation, car ownership, and housing tenure), marital status, and region were collected. Cotinine concentrations showed no overall trend over the study period. The mean value was 289.15 ng/mL (SD 174.43); excluding those who had not smoked in the past 24 hours, the mean value was 302.08 ng/mL (SD 168.78). A higher cotinine concentration was associated with being middle-aged (peaking at 40 years), being male, being single, greater economic deprivation, and not living in London. After adjusting for cigarette consumption, higher values were associated with middle age, being male, and greater deprivation. This study provides the most complete picture yet of the smoke intake of cigarette smokers in England. The fact that cotinine peaks at around the age of 40 years raises the possibility that nicotine intake continues to increase decades after a person starts to smoke. Greater nicotine intake in more deprived smokers could explain why they find it harder to stop smoking.

Source: Fidler, J.A. et al. Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention 17, 3331-3336, December 1, 2008
Link: http://tiny.cc/p1beW