Dearborn – Everybody that Rola Rayes knows smokes the ornate water pipe that has become popular in Metro Detroit and around the world.

But no one realizes the dangers linked to the pipe, known here as a hookah, because it is so ingrained in her Middle Eastern culture.

Rayes, 17, has been trying to convince her family and friends about the personal health risks of water pipe smoke, and second-hand smoke to others.

“It’s a very big problem,” said Rayes, a Dearborn resident who moved here in 2005 from Lebanon.

“This is affecting me, it is affecting my brothers and it is affecting them.”

Rayes joined state and local health leaders Thursday to strategize ways to tackle a growing state problem of hookah smoking.

They are trying to stop the use of hookah pipes as research about the risks continues to mount.

For example, smoking the hookah for an hour can yield as much smoke as 100 or more cigarettes. It contains significantly more nicotine and carbon monoxide than cigarette smoke, and use by pregnant woman can contribute to low birth weights, according to recent studies.

“It’s spread and is being used widely among different age groups and across ethnicities,” said Dinah Ayna, coordinator of the forum, organized by the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services.

No research into hookah use existed before 2002, according to Wasim Maziak, director of the Syrian Center for Tobacco Studies in the Middle East. But his center alone has been involved in 50 scientific reports about argileh, the fruity, fragrant tobacco used in hookah pipes.

Although it is unclear whether smoking cigarettes or a hookah pipe is more dangerous, studies have shown that hookah smoking increases the risk of lung cancer, decreases lung function and increases blood pressure and heart rate. It also is linked to dental diseases and oral cancer.

In the U.S., water pipe usage has been reported in all states and about 300 hookah cafes have opened, mostly near college campuses.

Closer to home, a 2008 study of water pipe use by Wayne State University students showed 15.1 percent had tried it, 12.4 percent used it in the past year and 4.7 percent acknowledged regular use. It’s so easy to get hookah pipes locally that some businesses deliver rentals to people’s homes, like pizza.

“It’s becoming a global epidemic,” said Maziak, who is also an assistant health professor at the University of Memphis.

Tobacco use of any type is the leading cause of preventable deaths nationally and locally, said Janet Olszewski, Michigan Department of Community Health director.

That’s why the state health officials continue to lobby for a smoking ban in Michigan and launched a study about hookah usage so it can devise ways to attack it.

“This is a particularly serious problem,” Olszewski said.

But many people do not believe it, including Mike Krizmanich, co-owner of the Lava Hookah Lounge, a popular spot for young people in Shelby Township.

He believes the recent hookah research is partly motivated by the decline of cigarette sales in communities where argileh smoking has become popular. He also said the hookah tobacco is pure and contains no additives or nicotine.

“It’s a gimmick,” Krizmanich said of the health warnings. “There’s nothing wrong with it.”

But research doesn’t lie, said Adnan Hammad, senior director of ACCESS. That’s why local communities must start now to curtail the use of a Middle Eastern tradition.

“We don’t want the community to be afflicted with cancer and cardiovascular disease 20 years from now,” said Hammad.

“We want people to live a long time.”


© Detnews

CEDAR RAPIDS – It’s advertised as a way around Iowa’s smoking ban. But even though there’s no smoke, there are some burning health concerns.

Makers of electric cigarettes pushed the product as the healthy way to smoke. Federal Health Officials say that’s not true. E-cigarettes emit a puff of flavored water vapor with nicotine and other chemicals to inhale.

Electronic cigarettes don’t contain any tobacco, but the FDA says they’re still unsafe. Yet, just like traditional cigarettes, people are still lining up to buy them.

North Liberty’s Cigarette Outlet specializes in all kinds of tobacco products, and just recently started selling electronic cigarettes.

“When they first came out, we were selling quite a bit. We sold out of our stock,” North Liberty Cigarette Outlet clerk Gabe Rael said.

One electronic cigarette costs about the same as four to five packs of traditional cigarettes and also has about the same amount of nicotine.

“It’s a great alternative for those that have to smoke, have to have their nicotine,” Rael said.

Even though e-cigarettes haven’t smoked their traditional competition quite yet, people are turning to them as a way to feed their nicotine fix.

“There’s no tar. There’s no additives…the stuff people want to avoid,” Rael said.

Yet, health experts warn nicotine in the product is still dangerous.

“It pushes the heart rate up. It makes blood pressure go up. It adversely affects the cardiovascular system,” retired physician Leslie Weber said.

And, it’s also addictive.

“This is the only addictive substance we have that’s legal. You can’t use cocaine. You can’t use marijuana. You can’t use heroin. Those are all illegal. Well, nicotine isn’t really all that different,” Weber said.

But, as long as nicotine remains legal and there’s demand for it, companies will keep pushing these kinds of products.

The Iowa Attorney General’s office is beginning to take a look at electronic cigarettes to see if there are any legal issues with using them in public.

On Monday, Oregon banned selling e-cigarettes until the FDA rules on their use.


© Kcrg

Parents all over the country can feel safer knowing that big tobacco will no longer be able to prey on children with despicable and manipulative marketing practices, thanks to recent actions by the president and Congress.

Fifty years after tobacco smoke was found to be hazardous to health, a rogue industry will finally be subject to strong regulation. This is a historic moment for public health in this country.

In the absence of meaningful regulation, the tobacco industry has had dangerously wide latitude to pursue its only goal – to addict more customers and stop current users from quitting.

Every day, 3,500 kids try a cigarette for the first time. Another 1,000 children become addicted, daily smokers. One-third of those addicted kids will eventually die prematurely as a result of their smoking.

Granting the FDA authority to regulate the manufacture, sale and marketing of tobacco products will go a long way to reduce this deadly toll.

Big tobacco will no longer be able to entice kids with candy and fruit flavored products or flashy advertising. And the industry will be required to disclose the ingredients in its products, including arsenic and polonium, two of the world’s most potent poisons.


© Nwherald

Salaried workers feeling cornered by the ever-expanding ban on smoking in Tokyo can rest easy at a recently opened cafe in the Shinbashi district that caters exclusively to smokers.

Stogies OK?: Cafe Tobacco opened in April in Tokyo’s Shinbashi district. KYODO PHOTO

At Cafe Tobacco, smoking is allowed on all three floors, according to its operator, Towa Food Service Co.

The cafe, with 44 places, opened near JR Shinbashi Station in April. Towa Food Service has also opened a second Tobacco Cafe in the nearby Yurakucho business district.

A sign posted at the entrance advises people with children and those under 20 to refrain from using the cafe.

The smoke, meanwhile, is not visible inside the building as smoke neutralizers are installed on each floor. “Smokers also hate smoke from other smokers,” said a Towa Food Service official.

The cafe also offers original blend coffee with a bitter taste, which is believed to go well with cigarettes.
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© Japantimes

Citing his own experience as a teenage smoker, President Obama on Monday predicted a tough new law giving the government expanded authority to crack down on cigarette marketers will help young people make the choice not to take up the habit he has struggled with for years.

As he signed the measure into law in a Rose Garden ceremony this afternoon, Obama said it would help stem the “constant and insidious barrage of advertising” that every year draws millions of teenagers into a lifelong struggle to quit.

“I know,” Obama said. “I was one of those teenagers, and so I know how difficult it can be to break this habit when it’s been with you for a long time.”

The new law gives sweeping power to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate tobacco products. And it directly bans tobacco companies from using youth-oriented gimmicks such as adding candy, fruit and spice flavors to cigarettes or using tobacco-product logos and brand names in sponsoring athletic and entertainment events.

Nearly a quarter of high-school students in the United States smoke cigarettes, according to the National Institutes of Health. And people who start smoking before the age of 21 have the hardest time quitting, the agency reports. About 30 percent of youth smokers will die early from a smoking-related disease.

Flanked by lawmakers who have fought tobacco companies for years, Obama declared his signature on the bill represented a significant defeat for those who tried to hook young customers.

“Today,” Obama said, “change has come to Washington.”

For Obama personally, change is more elusive. He gave up cigarettes as part of a deal with his wife, Michelle Obama, who wanted him to quit before he took on the rigors of a presidential campaign. He swore off cigarettes and started chewing Nicorette gum.

In recent weeks, though, aides to the president have tacitly acknowledged the president’s nicotine habit isn’t a thing of the past.
© Nwsource

New legislation that’s headed to President Obama’s desk gives the Food and Drug Administration greater powers to regulate the production and marketing of tobacco products. The latest rules bring mixed reaction — No if, ands, or butts about it.

A new tobacco control bill has passed after healthy debate in the U.S. House with the goal of keeping kids from lighting up. Sue Isbell, a smoker herself, said she thinks the currents laws are just fine.

“I think for the children it’s wonderful, but for us adults that are already hooked, they need to leave us alone,” said Isbell.

Greg Michaels said he feels that the government is intervening more and morning in people’s lives.

“That’s just something I’m really concerned about. It’s something I don’t think our Founding Fathers would be comfortable with and neither am I,” said Michaels.

Call it a lack of smoke appeal. Nearly 75 percent of House members voted in favor of the bill. That means tobacco companies are about to face a lot of new rules.

Ads for cigerettes and other tobacco will no longer be allowed near schools. Except for menthol, there will be no more special tobacco flavors. Cigarette makers will also be barred from sponsoring entertainment or sporting events. And instead of light and ultra light, cigarette packs will all be labeled with larger warnings.

Some store owners like Muhammed Alyousef said it all comes down to money in the end.

“As a smoker, I’m going to stay smoking. As a business owner, people are always going to be looking for cheaper prices,” said Alyousef.

Many non-smokers, like Philip Creasy, welcomed the enhanced restrictions. Creasy said that ultimately good habits start at the family level.

“You’ve got to lead with by example,” said Creasy.

This bill now goes to President Barack Obama, who’s expected to sign it into law.

Source: Waff

The Obama Administration continues to insist, all Congressional evidence to the contrary notwithstanding, that Uncle Sam has no interest in running the U.S. auto industry. About the tobacco industry there is no such Washington scruple on either end of Pennsylvania Avenue.

President Obama is poised to sign a bill passed by Congress this week that authorizes the Food and Drug Administration to regulate tobacco products for the first time. The legislation would allow the FDA to reduce tar and nicotine in cigarettes, ban certain flavors and ingredients, and prohibit the use of words such as “mild” or “light” to advertise a brand.

Amid much self-congratulation, proponents are calling it a victory for public health. But, well, where to begin?

The legislation happens to make it more difficult for tobacco companies to market smokeless alternatives to cigarettes that are far less lethal because they contain fewer carcinogens than cigarettes and don’t enter the lungs. And while reducing the tar or nicotine content of an individual cigarette might make it “safer,” it will also induce some people to smoke more to achieve the same fix — the same way people often compensate for lower-calorie foods by eating larger servings.

Then there’s the bill’s exemption for menthol from the ban on flavored tobacco products. Menthol happens to be the most popular cigarette flavor, and the Journal reports that the Congressional Black Caucus pressed for the carve-out. Menthol brands account for less than 30% of the U.S. market but are favored by 75% of black smokers. Black public health officials understandably have opposed the exemptions. But black lawmakers apparently believe that banning an unhealthy product used by a disproportionate number of black voters is the greater evil.

What’s also clear is that prohibiting menthol would especially hurt Lorillard, the top menthol cigarette maker, and Philip Morris, whose Marlboro Menthol is the second-leading menthol brand after Newport.

Which brings us to the real cynical beauty of this bill: It lets the politicians claim to be punishing Big Tobacco while further cementing their financial partnership. It’s no coincidence that Philip Morris, the market leader, is squarely behind a bill that allows the FDA to curb advertisements. The Altria Group subsidiary is hoping to solidify its market share, and any regulation that impedes the ability of smaller rivals to advertise and lure away Philip Morris customers can only benefit the Marlboro Man and his shareholders.

The government has also become increasingly dependent on tax revenue from Big Tobacco, which is why the FDA will have the authority to regulate tobacco products but not to ban them. Cigarette taxes were recently increased to finance Schip, the children’s health insurance program that was expanded in February, and another increase has been mooted to finance ObamaCare.

Congress was also careful to protect its trial bar financiers. “No provision of this chapter,” reads the bill, “shall be construed to modify or otherwise affect . . . the liability of any person under the product liability law of any state.” Which is to say that the legislation offers no protection from tort liability to tobacco companies that fully comply with the FDA content and labeling rules. Democrats can use the industry as a cash cow twice: for tax revenue, and then in campaign contributions passed through the tort bar.

In 2000, the Supreme Court said the FDA lacked authority to regulate tobacco under current law. The Bush Administration resisted efforts to give the agency such authority by arguing, among other things, that the FDA was barely competent to regulate the products already on its plate. The FDA’s role is to protect consumers from risks that they don’t want to assume. People who smoke know it’s dangerous and voluntarily assume the risks.

There’s also more than a little doubt that the bill’s advertising bans can survive a First Amendment challenge. In a 2001 ruling, Lorillard Tobacco Co. vs. Reilly, the Supreme Court struck down regulations that restricted the outdoor advertising of tobacco products in Massachusetts. “[S]o long as the sale and use of tobacco is lawful for adults, the tobacco industry has a protected interest in communicating information about its products and adult customers have an interest in receiving that information,” wrote Justice Sandra Day O’Connor for the 5-4 majority. But had Congress dropped the ad bans, it might have lost Philip Morris’s support.

To sum up, this bill is largely an exercise in political and financial self-interest masquerading as public virtue. Another day at the Washington office.

Iran’s presidential elections are on Friday, and they may be only round one. If none of the candidates makes it over the 50% vote threshhold, there’ll be a runoff.

A good deal of our time today was spent on what the differences could be among the four candidates, especially given that a council of clerics has to approve each candidate who appears on the ballot [and it rejected hundreds more hopefuls, including all the women].

President Ahmadinejad may be in trouble with voters because of the floundering economy, or it may turn out that the force of personality may be enough to carry him in a race where the candidates all share revolutionary-theocratic politics. Our guests and callers — among them many Iranian-Americans — were wonderfully insightful on the nuances.

Washington correspondent Kitty Felde updated us from outside the Holocaust Memorial Museum on the fatal shooting of a security guard, allegedly by an elderly white supremacist who was himself shot and wounded when he opened fire. She’ll be reporting more on this in the hours and days to come. We considered the larger question of hate crimes at a moment in history when the country elected a black president.

And by this time tomorrow, the U.S. Senate should have done a u-turn on decades of policy, voting to put tobacco products under the regulation of the FDA. Years of lobbying by tobacco companies had exempted nicotine from FDA supervision, but now even one of the big tobacco companies, Philip Morris — corporate name Altria — figures it can benefit from regulation. The new rules will not only govern what can go into cigarettes and other tobacco goods, but how they can be sold and marketed, so don’t expect to see either flavored cigarettes or cartoon-like characters peddling smokes.

Tomorrow, we hear from a White House point person on health care reform. And what’s the difference between a migraine and a headache? A world of hurt.
Source: Scpr