Jokowi urged to sign tobacco treaty to protect children

thejakartapost.com – 9 de Febrero de 2015 – india

A petition has been launched calling on President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to ratify the UN’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which was passed to prevent the tobacco industry from targeting children.

The petition, which went online on Saturday at www.change.org/DukungFCTC or http://www.kompak.co/fctc/, was sponsored by a group calling themselves the Smoke Free Agents (SFA).

The group said that the government had failed to protect children and teenagers from the dangers of tobacco, considering the high prevalence of juvenile smokers in the country.

“We are asking members of the public to demand that the President adopt the FCTC as soon as possible in order to protect our younger generation,” SFA member Muhammad Ricki Cahyana said on Saturday.

He added that it would be ironic if Indonesia failed to ratify the FCTC since it was one of the countries that formulated the framework in 2002-2003. Indonesia remains the only ASEAN country not to have ratified the treaty.

Data from the Health Ministry show there are 60 million smokers in Indonesia, and that more than 3.9 million children aged between 10 and 14 become smokers every year.

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http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/09/jokowi-urged-sign-tobacco-treaty-protect-children.html#sthash.V2R7Hm5g.dpuf

Letter: Lobbyist lied about tobacco use

inforum.com – 9 de Febrero de 2015 – EEUU

In testimony to a committee of the North Dakota State Legislature as reported in The Forum Tuesday, Feb. 3, Mike Rud, president of the North Dakota Retail Association, lied about the content of a 2012 CDC study on tobacco use.

Use of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco in North Dakota among both adults and young people are not low as Rud would like us to believe. They are among the highest in the nation and the study he cited confirms that fact.

Adult smokeless tobacco use is 49th highest out of 51 states and the District of Columbia.

Adult cigarette use is 30th highest.

Youth smokeless tobacco use is 36th highest out of 40 states reporting.

Youth cigarette use is 34th out of 44 states reporting.

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http://www.inforum.com/letters/3674610-letter-lobbyist-lied-about-tobacco-use

Portland City Council to consider smoke, tobacco-free parks

kptv.com – 10 de Febrero de 2015 – EEUU
KPTV - FOX 12

PORTLAND, OR (KPTV) - Portland City Council will consider extending Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R)'s smoking and tobacco ban to all the city's parks on Wednesday.

If the council approves the measure all city parks, natural areas, community centers, trails, golf courses, recreation areas and all other PP&R sites would be completely tobacco and smoke-free starting July 1, 2015.

PP&R said there are currently more than 500 cities and towns nationwide that have similar laws, including 64 cities and counties in Oregon.

Currently, tobacco is only prohibited at Director Park, Pioneer Courthouse Square and the portion of the South Park Blocks that is located on the campus of Portland State University. PP&R also prohibits smoking within 25 feet of any picnic table, play structure, or other designated kid's play area.

“Expanding PP&R's existing tobacco-free policy across the entire system sends a consistent message,” Portland Parks Commissioner Amanda Fritz said. “It helps to create healthy and safe environments within all of Portland Parks & Recreation—especially for children and youth.”

Cigarettes, cigars, e-cigarettes, vaporizers, hookahs, pipes, chew, snuff, smokeless tobacco and marijuana are just a few of the items PP&R hopes to ban.

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http://www.kptv.com/story/28065639/portland-city-council-to-consider-smoke-tobacco-free-parks#ixzz3RLV23Euw

Vietnam orders tobacco firms to pay more for anti-smuggling fund

thanhniennews.com – 10 de Febrero de 2015 – Vietnam

Vietnamese tobacco firms have been asked to more than triple their contribution to a compulsory funding initiative aimed at cracking down on contraband in the country.

According to a new regulation, the Tobacco Association is now required to pay VND3,500 (16 US cents) for each smuggled or counterfeit 20-cigarette pack confiscated in Vietnam, local media reported.

The rule is applied for all cigarettes, irrespective of the brand. The old fee was VND1,100 a pack.

Around 70 percent of the payment will be given to task forces directly dealing with the smugglers, 17 percent to officials in command and the rest to promote clean and safe methods for destroying the illegal goods.

Vu Van Cuong, chairman of Vietnam National Tobacco Corporation, has several times asked to pay more for the fight against smugglers to make it more effective.

Cigarette imports are banned in Vietnam, but smuggling has deprived the country an estimated VND6.5 trillion ($304.7 million) in tax revenue every year.

Cigarette smuggling, particularly the trade of counterfeits, has long believed to have well-established links to organized crime and terrorism.

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http://www.thanhniennews.com/business/vietnam-orders-tobacco-firms-to-pay-more-for-antismuggling-fund-38621.html

Tobacco Smoke Exposure In Womb Increases Diabetes Risk, UC Davis Researchers Find

cbslocal.com – 9 de Febrero de 2015 – EEUU

DAVIS (CBS SF) – A new study from researchers at the University of California, Davis and the Public Health Institute found women exposed to tobacco smoke from their parents in the womb have are at higher risk for diabetes.

The study involved 1,800 daughters of women who sought obstetric care through Kaiser Permanente between 1959 and 1967.

According to the study, women whose mothers smoked while pregnant were two to three times as likely to be diabetic when they became adults. A higher diabetes risk was also found when fathers smoked while their daughter was in utero, but researchers said more study is needed to determine how much risk.

Results of the study comes as California looks to strengthen already tough anti-smoking laws. Last month, Sen. Ed Hernandez, D-Azusa proposed making California the first state in the country to raise the minimum age to buy tobacco to 21.

The study is published in the Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease.

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http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2015/02/09/tobacco-smoke-exposure-womb-diabetes-risk-uc-davis-public-health-institute-mothers-fathers/

Apoyo a la idea de ‘borrar’ las cajetillas de tabaco

eldiadevalladolid.com – 4 de Febrero de 2015 – EEUU

Eliminar los eslóganes, marcas o imágenes de las cajetillas de tabaco puede ayudar a reducir el consumo. Así lo ha considerado el 63 por ciento de participantes en nuestra encuesta, quienes apuestan por un diseño ‘neutro’ que ya ha sido implantado en Australia y que a partir del año que viene será adoptado también en Reino Unido. Mientras, el 38 por ciento cree que esta iniciativa no tendrá ninguna consecuencia directa sobre los fumadores españoles.

Los británicos pretenden con esta medida reducir la mortalidad asociada al tabaquismo, que en este país alcanza cifras de 800.000 muertes al año. El doctor Cyril Chantler mantiene que el empaquetado genérico de cigarrillos aleja a la población de su consumo, especialmente entre los ciudadanos más jóvenes. Esta decisión viene también motivada por el ejemplo de Australia, donde este tipo de empaquetado está vigente desde el año 2012 obteniendo una reducción considerable del número de fumadores. Así, desde 2010 el número de cigarrillos semanales consumidos por cada persona ha bajado de los 111 a los 96 y solo un 12,8 por ciento de los residentes se declara fumador.

Francia, Irlanda y Finlandia son algunos de los países europeos que se plantean adoptar esta medida. Nuestro país no aparece de momento en la lista, pero el sondeo indica que los españoles respaldan esta iniciativa, auspiciada por la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) dentro del Convenio Marco para el Control de Tabaquismo.

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http://www.eldiadevalladolid.com/noticia/Z27EE252B-C7FC-B852-D85FE3B5E05B9270/20150204/consumo/tabaco/reduce/mitad/12/a%C3%B1os/pero/gasto/sube/23

Secondhand Smoke Goes Electronic With Damaging Free Radicals From E-Cig Vapor

medicaldaily.com – 4 de Febrero de 2015 – EEUU

When electronic cigarettes hit the U.S. market back in 2007, not all health care practitioners were quick to label them a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes with nicotine. A recent study conducted at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has revealed that exposing mice to e-cigarette vapor results in a compromised immune system in the lungs as well as exposure to potentially dangerous chemicals found in traditional cigarettes.

"Our findings suggest that e-cigarettes are not neutral in terms of the effects on the lungs," Dr. Shyam Biswal, a professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at the Bloomberg School, said in a statement. "We have observed that they increase the susceptibility to respiratory infections in the mouse models. This warrants further study in susceptible individuals, such as COPD patients who have switched from cigarettes to e-cigarettes or to new users of e-cigarettes who may have never used cigarettes."

Biswal and his colleagues placed one group of mice into an inhalation chamber where they were exposed to e-cigarette vapor equal to actual human e-cigarette inhalation over the course of two weeks. A second group of mice were placed in a different inhalation chamber where they were exposed to air. Following e-cigarette vapor or air exposure, each group of mice were divided into three subgroups. One subgroup received nasal drops with Streptococcus pneumonia, the second group received nasal drops with virus Influenza A, and the third group did not receive any virus or bacteria.

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http://www.medicaldaily.com/secondhand-smoke-goes-electronic-damaging-free-radicals-e-cig-vapor-320740

E-cig toxins; younger women at heart attack risk

hometownfocus.us – 6 de Febrero de 2015 – EEUU

Q: My husband has been puffing on e-cigarettes for over a year, and he’s pretty much given up tobacco. I’m grateful, but I’d like him to give up the gadget, too. Can you give me some ammunition? -- Audrey S., Saugerties, New York

A: Absolutely. E-cigarettes are not harmless, although they are currently unregulated. Different brands and types of e-cigs contain varying levels of toxins. A new study for the Japanese Ministry of Health found that some e-cig vapors contained 10 times more formaldehyde than regular tobacco smoke, and formaldehyde is a very potent carcinogen. Puffing a lot on the device can overwork the heating element, releasing additional toxins (there even have been reports of e-cigarettes exploding).

A University of South California study found that some e-cigarettes contain four times more nickel than tobacco cigarettes, plus chromium (which is not found in regular smokes). Replacement cartridges may contain lead, zinc and other toxic metals. Although they are found at lower levels than in tobacco cigarettes, they’re still NOT good for you!

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http://www.hometownfocus.us/news/2015-02-06/Health/Ecig_toxins_younger_women_at_heart_attack_risk.html

MSU Moves To Make Campus Tobacco-Free

cbslocal.com – 5 de Febrero de 2015 – EEUU

EAST LANSING (WWJ) – Michigan State University could soon join a growing list of college campuses across the country to go completely “tobacco-free”.

MSU spokesman Jason Cody told WWJ Newsradio 950 that the University Board of Trustees will vote on a proposed ordinance banning the use of tobacco products on campus later this year.

Basically, Cody said, and they’re going to make this happen.

“The task force that the provost has put together is not looking at whether we do this, we’re looking at how do we do this,” Cody said.

Smoking in campus buildings at Michigan State is already banned, but people are allowed to light up if they are at least 25-feet away from any building entrance or exit… for now.

“MSU is not telling anyone that they cannot smoke; MSU is telling people that they cannot smoke on campus,” Cody said.

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http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2015/02/05/msu-moves-to-make-campus-tobacco-free/

Tobacco tax to possibly increase

dailycall.com – 5 de Febrero de 2015 – EEUU

TROY — Sales taxes on cigarettes and electronic cigarettes may increase in 2015, which could put the Ohio cigarette tax at the highest in the region.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich recently unveiled his budget plan for 2015, which seeks to cut income taxes by 23 percent while tacking an additional half-cent onto the state sales tax. The proposed cigarette tax will be a $1 per pack increase, which will take the tax from $1.25 to $2.25 and make it the highest in the region, passing Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

The tax increase has serious potential to either deter smoking or to encourage smokers to consider quitting. According to Director of Cardiopulmonary Services at Upper Valley Medical Center Jerry McGlothen, historically, when the costs for a pack of cigarettes go up, the number of smokers decrease, especially among teenagers.

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http://www.dailycall.com/news/news/151697374/Tobacco-tax-to-possibly-increase