Ouch. That’s one reaction to an American Lung Association report giving North Carolina straight Fs on its efforts to reduce tobacco use among adults and teenagers. Obviously, the state could and should do more in this area. As recent stories and letters to the editor in the Salisbury Post have pointed out, non-smokers are still battling to clear the air around government buildings, parks and some private work sites. Tobacco use remains the primary cause of preventable death in North Carolina, according to the state health director.

But straight Fs? After the state approved a smoking ban in bars and restaurants last year and, prior to that, banned tobacco use on the premises of acute-care hospitals? Those aren’t small steps.
It’s true that the state continues to have one of the lowest tobacco taxes in the nation, at 45 cents a pack. Health experts say raising the tax would help discourage new smokers, especially young ones, while providing another incentive for habitual smokers to at least cut down. And as North Carolina wrestles with budget shortfalls, officials in recent years have diverted some tobacco-settlement money — roughly $10 million — from health and wellness programs into other areas. The legislature also has cut funding for programs to curb tobacco use, along with other health expenditures.

Still, given the state’s significant gains in shifting emphasis from tobacco production to tobacco prevention, its efforts aren’t failing. They just need continued support and improvement.

According to the Centers for Disease Control an estimated 443,000 Americans die every year from smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke. Professor Adi Gazdar reviewed the surgeon general’s study before it was made public–the professor of pathology at UT Southwestern in Dallas called the study groundbreaking. “It documents in great detail how both direct smoking and secondhand smoke causes damage not just to the lungs and heart but to every part of the body,” Professor Gazda said.

The damage begins with just one cigarette–researchers found that inhaling cigarette smoke causes immediate changes to the lining of blood vessels.

Deante Toombs is a social smoker–the surgeon general’s study finds light smoking almost as bad as heavy smoking.

Deante isn’t concerned.

“I live in America man,” Deante said. “Ii see things every day, smoking a cigarette is the least of the bad things I’ve seen.”

Professor Gazdar said filters and lowering the level of tar gives people a false sense of safety–he believes today’s cigarettes are every bit as bad as the old fashioned ones without filters.

“By putting in filters and dropping the tar content all that’s happened is that people take deeper puffs, hold it longer,” Professor Gazdar said. “Women find these cigarettes much more attractive and tolerable.”

Derek Peterson started the habit when he was thirteen–he said the study simply details what he already knew.

“You know, everybody knows it’s bad to smoke,” Derek said. “You know and if you don’t know it’s bad for you then you’re playing dumb.”

1 in 5 Americans still smoke–government officials want to reduce the rate to 12% in ten years.

Ralph Regalado has smoked for seven years–he’s gone from two cigarettes a day to a pack a day.

“If I could,” Ralph said. “I would like to quit.”

He’s like millions of Americans and Professor Gazdar wishes them all luck.

“There is no safe cigarette, that’s the bottom line,” Professor Gazdar said. “Quitting at anytime is always good.”

Three suspects in Tuesday’s armed robbery of a Rockford business have been identified by police. Police have arrested Dan C. Wekenmann, 42, of Loves Park and Shannon N. Krueger, 22, and Dorian R. Curry, 41, both of Rockford, on charges of robbing Tobacco Express, 864 W. Riverside Blvd. Deputy Chief Greg Lindmark said Wekenmann entered the business at 2:30 p.m. displaying what was believed to be a handgun. He took off from the building with a computer and an undisclosed amount of cash and got into a green van occupied by Krueger and Curry.

A Loves Park police officer stopped van in the area of Auburn Street and Harlem Boulevard. Wekenmann was arrested when he tried to flee on foot. Curry and Krueger were arrested a few blocks away after fleeing in the van.

Lindmark said Wekenmann also has been charged in the Nov. 2 armed robbery of Members Alliance Credit Union, 2550 S. Alpine Road.

The Loves Park Police Department and the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department are assisting with investigations on other potentially related robberies.

The British government is to step up its fight against cheap alcohol and tobacco with a set of new regulations, a leading government minister revealed on Tuesday. Health Secretary Andrew Lansley on Tuesday published a new government White Paper titled “Healthy Lives, Healthy People.”

The white paper aims to take public health care from the National Health Service (NHS), the free-at-point-of-use health care system for everyone, and put it into the hands of local government. The money for this, estimated at about 4 billion pounds (about 6.1 billion U.S. dollars), will be protected so that it cannot be spent on other items by municipal authorities.

Under previous governments the public health fund was often an easy means of balancing the budget within the NHS, and was raided to fund other items.

Lansley said: “It’s time for politicians to stop telling people to make healthy choices. Rather than lecturing people about their habits we will give them the support they need. We will support leadership from within communities.”

He added: “There will be a profound shift in tone, attitude and outlook. Rather than nannying people, we will nudge them by working with industry to make healthier lifestyles easier.”

The Department of Health (DoH) said that Britain is the most obese nation in Europe, with more than 80,000 lives a year lost through smoking and 1.6 million people dependent on alcohol. Last year more than 500,000 new sexually transmitted infections were diagnosed, and poor mental health is estimated to be responsible for nearly a quarter of the overall disease burden.

On Wednesday, the Department of Health and Human Services unveiled a proposal for new, larger and more graphic health warnings for cigarette packages and advertisements. The announcement has left investment advisors with strong opinions on how such a move would affect tobacco stocks. Will short-term profit-taking take place? Will the sector suffer as a whole? Is such regulation already baked into tobacco?

Link notes that she’s been taking profits on Altria(MO_) stock, which is up 50% for Link, because she doesn’t see much upside to its valuation.

“But should Altria fall to the low $20s, I’d be an aggressive buyer,” Link says.

Meanwhile, Vice Fund(VICEX_) portfolio manager Jeff Middleswart said he thinks the larger tobacco warning signs could be a precursor to higher excise taxes in the future. The government, he explained, has no incentive to ban tobacco because of the extraordinary amount of taxes it reaps from the industry. (The vices in the Vice Fund consist of tobacco, alcohol, gaming, and weapons/defense stocks.)

“The more they demonize [tobacco],” Middleswart says, “the more the government tries to tax it more.”

So what exactly are the new regulations? Health officials are proposing nine new, larger and more graphic warning labels and images on cigarette packs depicting the negative impact of smoking on health. A Health and Human Services press release said the public will have the opportunity to comment on 36 proposed images through January 9, 2011. By June 22, 2011, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) will select the final nine images and warning statements.

By October 22, 2012, manufacturers will be banned from distributing cigarettes for sale in the U.S. that do not display the new labels.

The new proposal is the result of a law passed in June 2009 empowering the FDA to regulate the tobacco industry, legislation passed amid growing concerns about the impact of tobacco usage on individuals’ health. According to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), tobacco usage is responsible for 443,000 deaths each year or about 1,200 deaths each day; 30% of all cancer-related deaths are tobacco related.”Every day, almost 4,000 youth try a cigarette for the first time and 1,000 youth become regular, daily smokers,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius in the press release. “Today marks an important milestone in protecting our children and the health of the American public.”

Scientists are searching for new uses of tobacco and one potential use they have found is its use as a natural pesticide, due to tobacco’s content of toxic nicotine.
A “green” pesticide industry based on tobacco could provide additional income for farmers, and as well as a new eco-friendly pest-control agent, said Cedric Briens and colleagues.

They describe a promising way to convert tobacco leaves into pesticides with pyrolysis – a process that involves heating tobacco leaves to about 900 degrees Fahrenheit in a vacuum, to produce an unrefined substance called bio-oil.

The scientists tested tobacco bio-oil against a wide variety of insect pests, including 11 different fungi, four bacteria, and the Colorado potato beetle, a major agricultural pest that is increasingly resistant to current insecticides.

The oil killed all of the beetles and blocked the growth of two types of bacteria and one fungus. Even after removal of the nicotine, the oil remained a very effective pesticide.

Its ability of the oil to block some but not all of the microorganisms suggests that tobacco bio-oil may have additional value as a more selective pesticide than those currently in use, the report indicated.

A congressman is calling on the San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers to tell their players not to use smokeless tobacco on the field or in the dugout during the World Series. New Jersey Democrat Frank Pallone, chairman of the House Health Subcommittee, says he’s concerned about free advertising baseball players give the tobacco industry and “the influence this exposure has on young people.”

On Monday, Pallone sent letters to Rangers President Nolan Ryan and Giants President Larry Baer, telling them a “ban of smokeless tobacco while players are in uniform would be a great service to this country.”

At a House hearing in April, Pallone urged baseball and its players to agree to bar major leaguers from using chew, dip or similar products during games.

When it comes to the environment in this year’s election, most attention has focused on whether California voters will suspend the state’s landmark global warming law by approving Proposition 23. But a new battle is emerging in the final weeks before Nov. 2 over another ballot question opponents contend would force ordinary citizens — rather than big corporations — to pay for environmental cleanup, public health problems, traffic and other harm industry creates.

Largely overlooked until now, Proposition 26 would expand the definition of taxes so that more fees imposed by state and local governments would require a two-thirds vote by the Legislature or local voters.
Supporters, led by California Chamber of Commerce and oil companies, say tighter rules are needed to stop politicians from raising costs on a wide variety of products, from cell phones to gasoline to food.
“What Proposition 26 does is to protect consumers from these hidden taxes that state and local politicians disguise as fees,” said Beth Miller, a spokeswoman for the Yes on 26 campaign.
Critics call it a bailout for big business.
“I think Proposition 26 is as damaging as Proposition 23 is to California’s environmental protection efforts,” said Bill Magavern, state director of Sierra Club California. “It would block state and local governments from making polluters pay to clean up the damage they cause and to fund cleaner alternatives.”
Californians pay a wide variety of fees, many for environmental oversight. Motorists buying new tires pay $1.75 a tire, for example, to fund state programs to recycle old tires.
Some cities charge fees on businesses that sell alcohol to pay for police and public education programs to reduce drunkenness.
Depending on how Proposition 26 is interpreted by courts, many such fees could require two-thirds.
“By expanding the scope of what is considered a tax, the measure would make it more difficult for state and local governments to pass new laws that raise revenues,” the non-partisan state Legislative Analyst’s Office wrote.
“This change would affect many environmental, health, and other regulatory fees.”
The LAO said the measure could reduce state and local revenues by “up to billions of dollars annually,” including $1 billion this year because it is retroactive to Jan. 1.
In recent weeks, as Proposition 23 — bankrolled largely by Texas oil companies Tesoro and Valero — has struggled to gain traction, other oil companies, along with tobacco and alcohol firms, have poured money into Proposition 26.
State campaign finance records show in the last month, Chevron and the American Beverage Association have each donated $2 million; Philip Morris $750,000; Conoco-Phillips $500,000; Anheuser Busch $500,000; Occidental Petroleum $250,000; and Shell Oil $200,000.
The companies are funding a joint campaign seeking to pass Proposition 26 and to defeat Proposition 25, which would allow the California Legislature to pass a budget each year with a simple majority rather than the current two-thirds super-majority.
In all, that campaign has raised roughly $16.8 million — nearly half of it coming since Oct. 1.
The No on 26 campaign has raised roughly $2.3 million. Major donors to the no campaign include the state Democratic Party, which put in $1 million, and the Service Employees International Union, which contributed $500,000.
Proposition 26 is endorsed by the California Taxpayers Association, California Forestry Association, the Wine Institute, California Grocers Association and the California Manufacturers and Technology Association.
Opponents include the League of Women Voters, American Lung Association, American Cancer Society, California Labor Federation, Sierra Club and California Professional Firefighters.
The issue of what is a fee or tax has been contentious for years.
In the early 1990s, former Gov. Pete Wilson signed a law placing a fee on companies that made lead paint or gasoline, with the money paying for programs to screen children for lead poisoning and to reduce sources of lead in buildings.
Sinclair Paint sued, arguing the charge was a tax requiring two-thirds vote under California’s landmark 1978 measure, Proposition 13, because it provided broad public benefit. The state Supreme Court in 1997 rejected that argument, however, and said government may impose fees on companies that make contaminating products to help offset health effects from those products.
Proposition 26 would not affect fees already on the books, although many could not be increased without a two-thirds vote. Nor would it affect fees paid by industry to specifically fund inspectors or permits.
The Proposition 26 website says politicians would “have to get a two-thirds vote at the state level or voter approval at the local level for most increases.” Asked to name specific state fees that would be affected, Miller, of the yes campaign would not provide details.
Critics say the measure could nullify fees on cigarettes that fund programs to keep kids from smoking, fees on cell phones to beef up 911 systems, and fees on developers to fund traffic lights.
“Those who are responsible for the harm are responsible for cleaning it up. It’s a principle everybody understands,” said Janis Hirohama, chairwoman of the California League of Women Voters. “If your kid spills a glass of milk, they should clean it up.”

A disturbing new study found that Chinese cigarettes contain dangerous levels of heavy metals which could be hazardous to smoker’s heath and cause headaches, insomnia, and even cancer. According to a report released by the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Project, very high levels of lead cadmium and arsenic were found in 13 Chinese cigarettes brands. This is cause for serious concern because China is endangering lives of both buyers at home and across the globe since exports of tobacco industry are on the rise.

Dr. Richard J. O’Connor, of the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New York, lead author of the study stated, “The presence of such contaminants in an already-deadly consumer product demonstrates the need for strong regulation of tobacco products, as called for under the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). Smokers and non-smokers in China and elsewhere deserve to know what is in their cigarettes.”

78 popular Chinese cigarette brands analyzed
Researchers from the Buffalo-based Roswell Park Cancer Institute analyzed 78 different Chinese cigarette brands and compared them with those manufactured in Canada.

Canadian cigarettes were used as a benchmark because the country’s law requires cigarette manufacturers and importers to test the amount of heavy metals and make public the results.

It was noted that 13 cigarette brands manufactured in China contained excessive amount of heavy metals, almost three times the amount found in smokes produced in Canada.

Professor Geoffrey T. Fong from the University of Waterloo in Canada, a researcher of the ITC China Project, said, “It is fundamentally wrong that consumers in many countries know about the content of the chocolate bars they eat, but know nothing about what is in the cigarettes they smoke.

“There is a need for more such studies that measure the content of cigarettes and of cigarette smoke to help consumers and governments around the world make informed decisions.”

Soil, the real culprit
The researchers found that the heavy metal content is neither an additive nor a byproduct of shoddy production. The problem is due to the contaminated soil in which the tobacco is grown.

“Tobacco like other crops absorbs minerals and other things from the soil, so if the soil has cadium, lead or arsenic, they will be absorbed into the tobacco,” Fong said.

Knowledge of the hazards of smoking low in China
China has the world’s largest smoking population of over 320 million and is the biggest tobacco maker.

However, awareness about the potential hazards of smoking is much lower than the other ITC countries.

Million of smokers die each year in China from tobacco-related diseases and 100,000 people from exposure to second-hand smoke.

Only 68 percent of country’s smokers believe that cigarettes leads to lung cancer and only 36 percent believe that it can cause coronary heart disease.

The warning labels on the back of cigarette packs are written in English while less than 10 percent of the smokers understand the language.

More than 70 percent of Chinese smokers wrongly believe that “light” or “low tar” cigarettes are less harmful.

Professor Fong commented, “These results demonstrate how far China needs to go in tobacco control. Among the Chinese people, knowledge is low, misperceptions are high, and unless stronger action is taken, China will soon find itself in the midst of an even more devastating public health disaster than they are experiencing now.”

The findings of the report are published in the latest issue of ‘Tobacco Control.’