A green cigarette? Is that possible? A tobacco company that uses renewable energy and hybrid vehicles has a new magazine ad for an additive-free, organic cigarette that uses the term “eco friendly.” Tobacco foes are fuming. “It’s an egregious ad. It’s trying to greenwash a deadly and addictive product,” says Vince Willmore of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, adding research shows cigarettes also are the No. 1 source of litter. “When you hear a product is eco-friendly, you think it’s better for you.”

The ads for Natural American Spirit cigarettes make the “eco-friendly” claim next to a list of environmental efforts by the manufacturer, Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co. They began appearing in March in magazines such as Esquire, Field & Stream, Wired, Mother Jones, Elle and Marie Claire.

The company, owned by Reynolds American Inc., says it’s not saying its cigarettes are safer but that its manufacturing is greener. It says its facilities are wind-powered, its farmers use fewer chemicals and 70% of its sales staff drive hybrid vehicles.

“We try to be good stewards of the environment,” says spokesman Seth Moskowitz.

His company has faced similar complaints before. In 2000, after advertising its cigarettes as free of additives, the Federal Trade Commission negotiated a settlement that required it to include this statement: “No additives in our tobacco does NOT mean a safer cigarette.” In 2010, after marketing its “organic” tobacco, 33 state attorneys general demanded the company include a statement saying the cigarette was not safer as a result.

The new ads include such disclaimers, but Willmore’s group is again appealing to the attorneys general to take action.

“It is misleading to talk about being eco-friendly in a cigarette ad,” given the problems of littering and secondhand smoke, says Jeanne Finberg, a deputy attorney general in California who focuses on tobacco litigation.

Joel Makower, executive editor of GreenBiz.com, says the company may be accurate in describing its greening initiatives, which he welcomes, but adds, “Products that harm people should not be marketed as green,” He says they won’t fool many consumers: “The average person is going to look at that ad and ask, ‘What are they smoking?’”

A novel technology for delivering nicotine to the lungs may soon give smokers a new way to kick the habit.
When compared to the nicotine vapor delivery system used in the Nicotrol/Nicorette inhaler, the new technology proved more effective at delivering nicotine to the blood stream. As a result, it provides immediate relief of withdrawal symptoms, according to Duke University Medical Centre researchers.

Users also reported the new nicotine delivery method was more tolerable than the current inhaler because it caused less throat irritation.

“We wanted to replicate the experience of smoking without incurring the dangers associated with cigarettes, and we wanted to do so more effectively than the nicotine replacement therapies currently on the market,” said Jed Rose, Ph.D., director of the Duke Centre for Nicotine and Smoking Cessation Research where the technology is being developed. He presented the data today at the Society for Nicotine and Tobacco Research (SRNT) in Baltimore, MD.

Little nicotine vapour reaches the lung

The Nicotrol inhaler is a smoking cessation therapy that delivers nicotine vapor to the mouth and upper airways, but little of it reaches the lungs.

Duke’s new technology employs a unique method to deliver nicotine to the lungs. In today’s presentation, the researchers show the new lung delivery technology results in rapid absorption of nicotine that provides immediate relief of withdrawal symptoms and also re-creates some of the familiar sensations that are pleasurable to smokers.

Current methods that deliver medicine to the lungs – metered dose sprays, dry powder inhalers or nebulizers that create a fine mist – do not replicate the natural inhalation used by smokers when drawing on a cigarette. And, because medication residue often deposits in the mouth and throat, doses aren’t always high enough to ensure the appropriate amount reaches the lungs.

Just like cigarette smoke

Duke’s new technology combines the vapor phase of pyruvic acid, which occurs naturally in the body, and nicotine. “When the two vapors combine, they form a salt called nicotine pyruvate,” explains Rose. “This reaction transforms invisible gas vapors into a cloud of microscopic particles which is inhaled, just like a smoker inhales from a cigarette.”

In a study of the new Duke technology, nine healthy smokers inhaled 10 puffs of nicotine pyruvate in increasing doses, 10 puffs from a Nicotrol/Nicorette inhaler cartridge, and 10 puffs of room air (placebo). Blood was drawn before and after each set of inhalations. When the results were analyzed, the Duke researchers noted rapid increases in plasma nicotine concentrations following the nicotine pyruvate inhalations and less complaints of harshness/irritation when compared to the Nicotrol/Nicorette control cartridge. The smokers also said their cravings for cigarettes were substantially alleviated following the nicotine pyruvate inhalations.

Therapeutic effect

“Compared to the current nicotine vapor inhaler, we are able to give smokers more nicotine, although still less than a cigarette, with less irritation, resulting in reduced cravings,” said Rose. “Thus we are able to achieve a therapeutic effect with greater tolerability.”

More research is needed to examine the safety and effectiveness of prolonged use of the inhalation system, and to assess its role in helping people quit smoking. But, Rose says if all goes well, he anticipates the product could become commercially available within three to five years.

He also says the novel inhalation system may one day prove useful for delivery of other medications. Duke has filed patent applications on the new technology, which was invented by Rose and his colleagues, including his brother, Seth D. Rose, Ph.D., Duke colleague, Thangaraju Murugesan, Ph.D., and James E. Turner, an inventor of the Nicotrol/Nicorette inhaler.

ITALIANS are so worried about the state of their economy that they are returning in droves to their favourite vice – cigarettes.

More than two million people have started smoking again since the country’s authorities imposed a UK-style ban in 2005.

The law, which made smoking in all indoor public places illegal, bore results at first, with loyal customers choosing not to place owners of their favourite bars and restaurants at risk of massive fines.

But an initial 12 per cent drop in cigarette sales has been reversed, with the latest shock figures revealing that Italy now boasts a record 13 million smokers.

In 2009 alone, four ex-smokers in every 100 took up the habit again.

Last night experts blamed the recession, claiming that the added stress had caused ex-smokers to relapse, while unemployment and boredom were encouraging the young to take up smoking for the first time.

Pier Giorgio Zuccaro, of the health department’s alcohol, drugs and smoking institute, said: “The increase in the number of ex-smokers returning to the cigarette is partly linked to the economic crisis.”

The pressure of being out of work, the anxiety of finding a new job and the increase in free time were all factors drawing back people who kicked the habit, he added.

Lung specialist Dr Roberto Buffi agreed. “It is much easier for those with freer schedules to take up the little infernal cylinder,” he said.

Italy’s treasury is not even reaping the benefits of higher prices. Customs officials have seen a rise in bootleg cigarettes as their fellow countrymen go in search of a cheaper smoke.

In the first few months of 2009, the number of smokers increased by 3.4 per cent while over-the-counter tobacco sales went down by three per cent.

Official figures show that customs officers seized more than 170 tonnes of illegal tobacco, a 45 per increase over the previous year.

Most of the contraband comes from Eastern Europe – particularly neighbouring Slovenia – and the biggest busts have happened in border towns and ports like Genoa, Trieste and Naples.

Unlike the UK, there are more male smokers in Italy than female ones – 7.1 million, compared with 5.9 million women.

Summit County Council wants to seek a special cigarette tax to raise money for local arts and cultural organizations.
Council on Monday night passed a resolution asking the Ohio General Assembly to amend state law to allow the county to place the tax before voters.

The details, including the amount of the tax, haven’t been worked out and the proposal faces many hurdles before it even would appear on the ballot, County Executive Russ Pry said.

He requested the resolution based on lobbying from the arts community. But he declined to say whether he would support the tax itself without knowing the amount and how the revenue would be distributed.

He said the tax could support financially struggling organizations such as the Akron Art Museum, Akron Civic Theatre and the All-American Soap Box Derby.

This isn’t the first attempt to levy a local tax on cigarettes for arts and culture. The council created an arts and cultural district in 2005 in anticipation of the state allowing counties to seek the tax.

But state lawmakers ended up limiting that power to counties with a population of 1.2 million or more — making it a possibility only in Cuyahoga County. In 2006, Cuyahoga County voters approved a 1.5 cent per cigarette tax to support arts and culture. It is expected to raise $20 million for 20 years.

”To be a great community, you need vibrant arts,” Summit Councilman Frank Comunale said. He added that the arts are an ”economic development tool.”

Councilwoman Gloria Rodgers questioned why the tax would be only on cigarettes. Why not alcohol and pop, she asked.

”Everything is put on the backs of smokers and I think we need to spread it out,” said Rodgers, a nurse who noted she doesn’t advocate smoking.

In other business, council:

• Eliminated the $20 a day given to residents for serving jury duty in Common Pleas Court. The move — expected to save up to $250,000 a year — will be in place for at least the next three years.

Instead of paying jurors, the court will offer free parking. About 6,000 to 7,000 people a year serve as jurors.

The cost-cutting measure takes effect this month.

Summit is now the largest county in Ohio that doesn’t pay jurors. But it isn’t the only one: Stark and Hancock counties also do not pay them.

The change affects only petit jurors and not those serving on grand juries, which meet for longer periods. Most petit jurors serve only two days or less, officials have said.

The common pleas judges suggested cutting the pay, saying the court either had to stop reimbursing jurors or possibly lay off workers.

• Agreed to allow Mary Ann Kovach, chief counsel in the prosecutor’s office, to be rehired part time after she retires in December. She will return at the end of March and could collect her government pension and a county paycheck, a common practice referred to as ”double dipping.”

She will be paid $53.16 an hour. Her current annual salary is more than $110,000.

The prosecutor’s office has said there is no one at the office who can replace Kovach, who has more than 30 years’ experience.

• Approved a resolution supporting Twinsburg’s application for a $250,000 Economic Adjustment Assistance grant through the federal Economic Development Administration. The city wants to use the grant to help develop a strategic response to the upcoming closing of the Chrysler stamping plant.

By Rick Armon
December 01, 2009

Mayor Bart Cox opened the November meeting with an opening prayer and a pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

After approval of the previous meeting of Oct. 8, and the approval of bills and warrants, time was given to Lorie Huntington of the Governors Youth Council.

Huntington then made a presentation about the dangers of the new smoke- less tobacco products being marketed to grade school and high school students. The items she displayed were about the size of a cell phone and looked like packages of candy, lip balm containers or lipstick containers. These products have all the ingredients of a cigarette, and are five times stronger and more addictive than cigarettes. The cigarette companies have found a loophole in the law and the government has not added any laws making it illegal to market these products to teenagers and younger students. Although the tobacco companies will deny their target is youth, these products appeal to the youth because of their packaging.

Huntington provided information. Some of the new tobacco products being tested have as much as three times the nicotine as the average cigarette, putting children at risk for tobacco related poisonings.

A 1-year old who weighs about 23 pounds could suffer severe toxicity or death if they ate 10-17 Camel Orbs, or 17 strips, or three to four sticks according to information provided by the Utah Department of Health. A 4-year old who weighs about 35 pounds would have to eat 12-27 orbs, or 27 strips or five sticks. High concentrations of nicotine in these products make them a serious health threat to young children.

Last year alone the Utah Poison Control Center took 102 tobacco poisoning calls, 88 of which were for children age 4 or younger, according to Marty Malheiro, the Center’s coordinator of outreach education. These tobacco cases included chewing tobacco, cigarettes, cigars, filter tips, snuff and unknown tobacco products.

All of these dangerous products can be purchased at the local stores in Carbon and Emery counties. Huntington said, “We all need to be aware of them and the effects of what they are doing to the youth in our area. The tobacco companies are targeting our youth and this is just a new way to do so. The hotline number for quitting is 888-567-8788. The lines are open Monday through Sunday from 6 a.m.-1 a.m.,” said Huntington.

In other business the City Council passed a resolution establishing an Identity Theft Policy in compliance with recent federal and state legislation they also passed a resolution establishing policies and procedures guidelines for new accounts, security deposits and returned checks.

The Orangeville City Council passed two resolutions authorizing the issuance of Taxable Lease Revenue Bonds of not more than $180,000 for the purpose of acquiring, constructing, installing skate park improvements and related matters.

A public hearing will be held on Dec. 10, concerning the issuance of the $180,000 in bonds for the Orangeville Skate Park.

Councilman James Davis has interviewed several skate park contractors and has developed a skate park layout and design using prefabricated skate park ramps on a large concrete slab. The exact location of the skate park has not yet been determined by the City Council.

The City Council also approved an outside of the city water and hook-up for Jim Fielder. This water hook up will cost Fielder about $2,000 and one water share.

Jacob Tuttle gave a report on the activities of the Youth City Council and Mayor Bart Cox appointed Carmen Humphrey as the advisor to the Youth City Council.

Orangeville City’s community Christmas chili/soup cookoff will be held on Dec. 5. Sign-ups for the chili/soup cook-off will be at the city hall. Sign up on or before Dec. 4. Chili and soups will be accepted from 3-3:45 p.m. on Dec. 5 at the Community Center. Bring at least one gallon, they will be served at the dinner portion of the Community’s Christmas Party. The judging will be at 4 p.m. at the old Fire Station/Community Center. Childrens crafts from 4-5 p.m. at the City Hall. From 5-7 p.m. the chili and soup dinner will be served. Orangeville officials encourage all to sign up for the chili/soup cook-off.

By PHIL FAUVER
November 24, 2009

A new vaccine developed by the North American Nabi Biopharmaceuticals may help bring an end to cigarette addiction. About 1.3 billion people are addicted to tobacco worldwide, including five million Chileans.

Tobacco addiction affects approximately 1.3 billion people worldwide, five million of which are Chilean. Photo courtesy of Flickr username b0r0da

The vaccine NicVax, which will be released towards the end of 2010, promotes the production of antibodies that attach themselves to nicotine particles within the body. Once this happens, the particles become too large to pass into the brain, which inhibits the release of dopamine- the neurohormone associated with feeling pleasure.

So far, trials have been carried out on people who smoke an average of 24 cigarettes each day and show a 50 percent success rate. This is twice the success rate found with prescription medications such as Champix.

“Nicotine patches and other medications replace nicotine with other substances,” said Jimmy Stehberg, a neurobiologist at Universidad Andrés Bello. “But this does not reduce the sensation of pleasure one gets from smoking… the (new) vaccine stops the nicotine from entering the brain, which reduces its addictive qualities.”

Chile’s leading tobacco sales company – Chiletabacos, an affiliate of British American Tobacco (BAT) – has a 98 percent market share of cigarette sales in the country. The company reports that sales this year have dropped to 12 billion cigarettes, down from 14 billion in 2008. The company also reports that consumers are now buying cheaper cigarettes such as Pall Malls (US$2 per pack).

While Pall Mall sales have risen by 32 percent in the recent years, sales of more expensive brands such as Belmont and Derby (US$2.60) have fallen by 50 percent since 2006.

Still, the economic downturn has not dampened the spirits of Chiletabacos general manager Benjamin Kemball, who hopes to maintain current production levels.

“We would like to increase our exports to other markets,” said Kemball. “Now we produce 20 billion cigarettes a year, 14 billion of which are sold locally and the rest is sold in the Southern Cone [Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay].” The company is currently looking into changing its name to British American Tobacco Chile.

In 2005 Chile’s Free Market Defense Court (TDLC) sanctioned Chiletabacos for exploiting its market position and signing exclusivity contracts with distributors in order to control competition. And in 2006 the Supreme Court upheld the finding against Chiletabacos.

The company was hit again two weeks ago with a new case brought by the National Economic Regulator (FNE). The FNE accused the company of not adhering to the 2006 verdict and asked the TDLC to fine the company US$17 million.

On July 14 Philip Morris – the world’s largest tobacco company – sued Chiletabaco demanding US$137.5 million in compensation. Philip Morris represents 4 percent of the Chilean tobacco market and markets locally the tobacco blends Marlboro and L&M (ST, July 26).

Sources: LA TERCERA, EL MERCURIO
By Gida Homad-Hamam

The tobacco industry is using social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to promote its products and persuade people to become smokers, a study revealed yesterday.

“The ban on advertising does not mean the tobacco industry has stopped advertising its products,” said Becky Freeman of Australia’s University of Sydney, who conducted the study.

She presented her findings in Bangkok at a threeday regional training workshop held by Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA).

Freeman said most tobacco companies were interested in viral marketing (using preexisting social networks to increase brand recognition) to persuade or influence audiences to pass products on to others.

A million people had visited video clips on YouTube reviewing cigarettes, she said, and thousands more had become fans of the products on Facebook.

“The Internet has made it easier to engage consumers by allowing them to contribute directly to marketing campaigns and brand development,” she said.

The use of social networking tools such as Facebook, Twitter, blogs, podcasts and RSS would be one of the main topics up for discussion at Tabinfo Asia 2009, the tobacco industry’s biggest event, to be held at the Impact Arena Exhibition Centre from today until Sunday.

SEATCA’s senior policy adviser Mary Assunta Kolandai said the tobacco industry was using creative tactics to attract buyers by introducing giveaways using brand colours and logos.

Another marketing device was the use of product and pack designs – such as colourful and glowinthe dark packs – to entice specific groups.

“For example, we found cigarette packs designed like lipsticks or wallets – a new way to lure more and more women to become smokers,” she said.

To prevent youth from taking up smoking, Kolandi has called on the government to issue comprehensive regulations banning such advertising and promotion on the Internet.

A group of 650 people, including teenagers, led by Action on Smoking and its alliances, will today demonstrate against the Tabinfo Asia 2009 at Impact Arena.

“This is a nightmare for our people,” SEATCA’s director Bungon Ritthiphakdee said, adding that the industry would step up its tactics to fight, delay and dilute national tobacco control legislation – as evidenced by the sessions and discussions lined up for its upcoming congress.

Also on the summit’s agenda is discussing how to wipe the regulatory slate clean, making packages more attractive and innovations to sustain addiction, Bungon said.

Box
Statistics
2.4 million people per year die from tobaccorelated diseases in Asia.
6,575 smokers die daily.
125 million adults are smokers in the Asean region.
350 million smokers in China.
1 million die in the mainland every year from tobaccorelated deaths.

By Pongphon Sarnsamak
The Nation
November 11, 2009

The first head-to-head comparison of different quit-smoking products finds that a nicotine patch combined with a nicotine lozenge had the most success.

More than other methods, including antidepressants, this combination best mimics the actual highs and lows of smoking to help smokers kick their habit, experts said.

“The study shows that, yes, one therapy came out on top, the patch and the lozenge [together],” said Dr. Jonathan H. Whiteson, co-director of the Joan and Joel Smilow Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation and Prevention Center at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City.

“The reasoning behind it is that the patch supplies a steady supply of nicotine replacement and the lozenges give a boost of nicotine which you can use when you have an extra craving. It gives people control,” said Whiteson, who was not involved in the research.

“If you combine these different types of nicotine replacement you’re going to get the best bang for your buck,” added Megan E. Piper, lead author of the new study and an assistant professor at the Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. “But also remember that in this study people got a lot of counseling. It was that combination that resulted in a 40 percent quit rate [at six months out].”

In fact, coupling the patch with the lozenge was the only intervention that performed better than a placebo, reported the study, which appears in the November issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.

The study adds insight to a field that’s long suffered from too little research. “As each medication comes out, it is tested against a placebo,” but not against other methods, Piper explained. “There just hasn’t been the funding or the availability of a program to do something like that.”

This research was funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health. Medication was provided free by drug maker GlaxoSmithKline. Several of the study authors reported financial ties to different pharmaceutical companies.

For this study, 1,504 adults who had smoked at least half a pack a day for the past six months and wanted to quit were randomly assigned to a placebo or one of five different quit-smoking interventions: nicotine lozenge, nicotine patch, bupropion (Wellbutrin, an antidepressant), nicotine patch plus nicotine lozenge, and bupropion plus nicotine lozenge. All groups received six individual counseling sessions with a case manager.

The nicotine patch, which has been available for more than two decades, is currently the most widely used pharmacotherapy to help people quit smoking.

However, only the combination of the nicotine patch and the lozenge performed significantly better than placebo six months after the person smoked their last cigarette, the team found.

People taking the patch-lozenge combination were also more likely to have sworn off cigarettes after one week and were more likely to have attained one full day without smoking, the researchers said.

The 40 percent (at six months) success rate reported here will decline as time goes on, Whiteson noted. He added, however, that in the smoking cessation arena, “even the 30 percent range is very good.”

Another expert said the study raised some key concerns. “The question is, how many of them had to continue on the lozenge in order to stay off cigarettes? I always tell people not to do the lozenge alone because it mimics the very thing that smoking does, which gives you a spike. Then, when you reach a trough, you pick up a lozenge — or cigarette,” said Dr. Len Horovitz, a pulmonary specialist with Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. “Once they stopped everything, could they do without the spikes and troughs [of the lozenge], which mimics physiologically everything the cigarette is doing? Smoking is a two-pronged problem. There’s nicotine dependence and a behavioral aspect to it.”

Dr. Elliot Wineburg, assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, felt the study suffered from some limitations, namely lack of individual attention to individual smokers’ habits.

“The authors said that they gave the patients lozenges according to the company’s [instructions],” he said. But this doesn’t take into account how much people smoke or how strong their cigarettes are. “They don’t even look into the amount of nicotine a person takes.”

By Amanda Gardner
HealthDay

The medical marijuana issue has little to do with helping people and more to do with making the drug legal for all those who want to get high and not get into trouble. If we are truly concerned about using marijuana for medicinal purposes, we would send it to the Food & Drug Administration to be tested and if approved they would decide on the best way to make the drug available.

This is how we handle any all potential new drugs in this country, and if approved, we get our prescriptions filled at a licensed pharmacy. However this has never been done with the drug marijuana, because we all know the results would be negative since the drug is more dangerous than anyone wants to admit and its medical use is at best minimal.

Instead Baby Boomer lobbyists have convinced several states to set up independent “marijuana dispensaries” which can sell marijuana directly to the public, with a doctor’s prescription. There is no other drug in this nation that is dispensed directly to the public through independent stores. Can you imagine an OxyContin dispensary in your neighborhood?

As predicted this has already led to widespread corruption and the creation of a new black market in which marijuana dispensaries are selling the drug to anyone, including minors. It has also led to an increase in doctors who will write a prescription for marijuana without proper diagnoses, for a price.

Let’s remember that the two drugs that kill more Americans are the two legal drugs of tobacco and alcohol. In alcohol’s case, when the drug became legal after Prohibition, we saw a dramatic increase in its use and an increase in addiction, accidents and use by underage youth. Making marijuana legal would only lead to the same results. The major difference is when you smoke pot, the goal is to get “stoned or high” unlike alcohol and tobacco, where you can use a small amount without creating impairment.

If we are honest with ourselves, we all know that the higher you get after smoking marijuana, the more impaired you get. So if there is a medical use, let’s put it through the proper channels, but if the real goal is to legalize marijuana, we need to think about the consequences.

Mike Gimbel,
Copyright © 2009, Baltimore Sun