IN SCOTLAND we know only too well the harm that tobacco causes – smoking is responsible for around a quarter of our adult deaths each year.
So we should celebrate our significant successes in tobacco control – most famously leading the way on introducing smoke-free public places, but also the halving of smoking rates from 47 per cent in 1972 to 24 per cent now.
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The Environmental Rights Action (ERA) has appealed to President Goodluck Jonathan to sign the National Tobacco Control Bill into law.
The group said it would do the country good as governments and public health advocates plan towards this year’s World No Tobacco Day on May 31. In a statement issued in Lagos by its Director, Corporate Accountability and Administration, Akinbode Oluwafemi, the organisation urged Jonathan to sign the Bill to celebrate the global event. Ream more »
The Czech Republic ratified the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Framework Convention of Tobacco Control on May 2 when it was signed by President Vaclav Klaus, the Health Ministry told CTK Thursday.
The Czech Republic ratified the convention after eight years of delays as the last EU member. Ream more »
Eating a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids might help protect smokers from heart disease. New information shows smokers given 2 grams of omega-3 fatty acids for four weeks led to improvement in elasticity of the blood vessels; moderating the effect of smoking that leads to arterial stiffness.
The omega-3 treatment improved health in the blood vessel walls known as the endothelium in smokers studied. Ream more »
A group of teenagers became the latest campaigners against Korea’s cigarette industry on Friday, calling tobacco production unconstitutional.
The students, members of an anti-smoking club at Handong International School in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, have begun an online movement to gather a million signatures. In the petition the middle school and high school students claim that the Tobacco Enterprise Law is “unconstitutional.” Ream more »
“Trust money shouldn’t help boost bill’s chances” (Our Views, March 7), taking the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) to task for advertising in favor of House Bill 2267, was off the mark. TSET doesn’t get, manage or spend taxpayer funds. All of its income comes from the annual payments from the tobacco industry to the state of Oklahoma, 75 percent of which goes directly to the trust, with the 25 percent balance going to the general fund. Those payments generate interest and earnings. This was accomplished by a constitutional amendment adopted by a landslide majority vote in 2000. Ream more »
No more Marlboros on the merry-go-round or Kools in the spray pool. It’s the law.
City lawmakers Thursday night voted overwhelmingly to ban smoking around Albany’s outside recreational areas, including playgrounds and ball fields, in hopes of limiting kids’ exposure to deadly second-hand smoke and setting a better example for youngsters before they pick up the habit.
The 13-1 vote came after County Health Commissioner Dr. James Crucetti enthusiastically endorsed the prohibition, calling prevention a key tool for stemming the tide of smoking-related deaths. Ream more »
The N.C. Alliance for Health is making a push to restore state funding for tobacco prevention programs, releasing a poll Wednesday that shows a majority of voters support it.
The Public Opinion Strategies survey found 74 percent of likely 2012 voters want the state to continue spending $17 million a year on programs to prevent children from smoking and help smokers quit.
But when asked to balance the funding against the state’s tough budget situation, support fell to 60 percent, with 35 percent suggesting money from the tobacco settlement should help pay for other state programs and balance the budget, the poll showed. Ream more »
Sweeping reforms to Costa Rica’s smoking laws passed the first round of debate in the Legislative Assembly on Monday. Lawmakers approved the bill 46 votes in favor and 4 against.
The bill, if it passes another round of voting on Thursday, would ban smoking in bars, restaurants, public buildings, bus stops and taxi stands. Individual cigarettes would be taxed an extra ₡20 (4 cents). A previous law banned smoking in public buildings, but was vague, allowing businesses like bars and restaurants to permit smoking indoors. Ream more »
The country observed the World Cancer Day today by organising various awareness programmes with the slogan ‘together it is possible’.
Dr Praveen Misha, secretary at the Ministry of Health and Population, said at a programme organised to mark the day that the government is working for the effective implementation of the anti-tobacco act across the nation. At the cancer awareness programme, Dr Mishra said cancer is developing as a major problem for all countries and excessive use of tobacco products is the major cause of the disease.
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