Reducing hookah use : a public health challenge for the 21st century

(Disponible en anglais seulement.)

Background, history, and prevalence - Why hookahs have become so popular - Health risks of hookah use - Awareness, attitudes and misconceptions - Policy strategies, issues, and challenges - Conclusions and recommendations - Resources - References.


http://www.tobaccofreeu.org/pdf/HookahWhitePaper.pdf

Comment: The authors highlight that the majority of the studies on hookah use are from the Middle East. More studies on this emerging tobacco control issue are needed in North America.

The potential of the internet as a medium to encourage and discourage youth tobacco use

(Disponible en anglais seulement.)

An increase in young Internet users has presented a problem and an opportunity for tobacco control advocates. The problem arises from the opportunities for advertising and marketing that the Internet provides pro-tobacco groups. However, tobacco control groups can also use the Internet as a tool for reaching young adults.

http://tc.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/abstract/12/suppl_1/i48

Comment: While there have been many changes in how the internet is used since 2003, how the industry uses the internet is still very important to understand. I think their presence on the web will continue to grow.

Chinese physicians and their smoking knowledge, attitudes, and practices

(Disponible en anglais seulement.)

Survey of 3552 hospital-based physicians in China discovered that their smoking prevalence is 23%, and 37% of current smokers have smoked in front of their patients. While 64% usually advise smokers to quit, few set quit dates or prescribe pharmacotherapy. These issues need to be addressed to help reduce smoking rates in China.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2007.02.037

Comment: I find it quite shocking that 37% of doctors who smoke have smoked in front of their patients!

Cigarette smoking as an alternative to screened drugs : why juvenile probationers smoke more

(Disponible en anglais seulement.)
Purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which probation may be associated with excessive cigarette use among at-risk adolescents. More than 80% of male and female adolescent smokers enrolled in an alternate high school, believed that juvenile probation led to an increase in smoking.

http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a714006233

Comment: This article also stated that the increase in tobacco use was because their Department of Juvenile Probation did not analyze nicotine for urinalysis. Would cessation programs be beneficial to help this group quit smoking?

Tobacco industry efforts undermining evidence linking secondhand smoke with cardiovascular disease

(Disponible en anglais seulement.)

After sifting through nearly 50 million pages of previously secret, internal tobacco industry documents, Tong and Glantz have documented for the first time how the tobacco industry funded and used scientific studies to undermine evidence linking secondhand smoke to cardiovascular disease.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.107.715888

Comment: Clearly shows that the tobacco industry continues to manipulate the content and presentation of scientific results.

Should smoking be banned in prisons?

(Disponible en anglais seulement.)

This commentary suggests that taking cigarettes from inmates violates their human rights, that American prisons with smoking bans are doing a horrible job at keeping cigarettes out, and that cigarettes should be allowed into prisons with administrators somehow better controlling where they are smoked. Smoking bans in prison need to be implemented only in tandem with cessation programs proven to work for this population group.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/tc.2007.021600

Comment: Interesting that removing a deadly product (cigarettes) from prisoners is viewed as a violation of human rights.

Tobacco-free electronic cigarettes and cigars deliver nicotine and generate concern

(Disponible en anglais seulement.)

Letter describes Ruyan cigarettes, the world's first "electronic" cigarettes, marketed by the Beijing-based company, Golden Dragon Group Ltd. Ruyan cigarettes are battery-powered, cigarette-shaped devices that deliver nicotine to smokers in a bid to emulate actual smoking.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/tc.2006.019687

Comment: Smokers across the world are looking for ways to end their habits. Is the electronic cigarette the next stop-smoking fad?

Into the mouths of babes

(Disponible en anglais seulement.)

This article gives a brief overview of Sean Marsee, a teenager who started dipping snuff at the age of twelve and died from cancer when he was in his senior year in high school. It also discusses the health effects of smokeless tobacco and the use of this product by teenagers.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,959638,00.html

Comment: It's interesting to note that this article about smokeless and spit tobacco was published in Time in 1985.

Inuit & tobacco : a report under the National Inuit Tobacco Use Reduction Campaign

Executive summary - Introduction - Program participants - Current situation - Research methodology - Research findings - Recommendations and program design - Action plan - Appendices.
http://www.pauktuutit.ca/tobacco/pdf/InuitandTobacco_report_Eng.pdf

Comment: With the highest rates of smoking in Canada, it is important that the Inuit peoples are a focus for cessation and prevention efforts. It is especially important that recommendations come from within that community, rather than being dictated by outsiders.

Tobacco advertising and children's smoking : a review of the evidence

This literature review explores the relationship between tobacco industry advertising and children’s smoking. The literature focuses on three methods: studies on the effect of advertising bans, consumer response, and on economic techniques. The review concludes that within the spectrum of social science, it is unavoidable to refute that children’s smoking is affected by tobacco advertising.
http://www.emeraldinsight.com/10.1108/03090569510100678

Comment: Due to the ruling of the Supreme Court of Canada on June 28, 2007, I thought it was appropriate to bring forth evidence that tobacco industry advertising is effective; especially, to children.

Reduced admissions for acute myocardial infarction associated with a public smoking ban : matched controlled study

(Disponible en anglais seulement.)

Matched control group study to determine whether there was a change in hospital admissions for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) among non-smoking individuals after a public smoking ban was implemented in Monroe County compared with Delaware County, Indiana, without such a ban. Researchers found significant reductions in AMI admissions associated with implementation of smokefree laws.

http://baywood.metapress.com/openurl.asp?genre=article&id=doi:10.2190/DE.37.3.a

Comment: More proof that smoking bans are beneficial for everyone.