Kennesaw could join a growing list of Georgia cities that have banned smoking nearly everywhere except private residences.
Last
week, City Councilmember Dr. Cris Welsh introduced an ordinance that
would ban smoking tobacco and e-cigarettes in public places.
"What
we want to do is talk to our business owners, talk to our citizens and
just begin the conversation -- see if this is something they would like
to follow in the footsteps of Savannah, DeKalb County and other
municipalities around us who have created a smoke-free environment for
their citizens," said Welsh.
Unlike state law, Dr. Welsh's
ordinance would ban smoking in bars, restaurants, public parks and all
privately owned, indoor workplaces. The ban even includes e-cigarettes.
Dixie's Vapor Shop owner David Owens says no studies have proven that what comes out of an e-cigarette or vaporizer is harmful.
"It's
a bi-product of the vegetable glycerin, which is basically a water
vapor that you exhale, and very, very little of the nicotine is exhaled
because most of it -- because it's vaporized -- is absorbed immediately
into your system," said Owens.
Smokers think banning tobacco nearly everywhere except their homes is a violation of their rights as adults.
"I
believe much in tobacco, so I am very against this movement of people
trying to ban smoking at public facilities," said John Fitzrobert Webb.
The proposal would severely limit the places smokers could light up.
"The places that we would be looking at are public parks, public buildings -- anywhere that children would be," Welsh said.
According
to Welsh, Kennesaw says a vote on the draft ordinance won't come
anytime soon. Last week was just initial presentation of the proposed
smoking ban.
Friday, November 29, 2013
Nicolites Respond to Smoking Rates in Wales
Leading electronic cigarette provider, Nicolites, has responded to the
release of figures which suggest that if smoking rates in Wales do not
decrease by 7%, smoking related illnesses could cost the NHS millions of
pounds.
As reported by Wales Online, it is thought that 23% of people in Wales smoke, and so it has been suggested that further action needs to be taken to meet the target of reducing rates of smoking to 16% within the next seven years.
The Welsh Government has outlined that, by 2020, it wishes to reduce rates of smoking by 7%. As the number of people who have stopped smoking has reduced by only 1% since the implementation of the smoking ban in 2007, it has been suggested that this target may be missed. Smoking related illnesses currently cost the NHS in Wales approximately £1 million each day, and not meeting targets could increase this figure.
Dr Ruth Hussey, Chief Medical Officer, spoke to Wales Online about introducing a public health bill which would focus on helping to improve people’s lifestyles and reduce smoking rates. She also spoke of campaigns to help people stop smoking, adding that:
“It’s something that needs continued attention and multiple ways in which we raise awareness of the harms smoking causes. Research has shown that a lot of smokers – around 70% – are ready to quit, so it’s finding the methods that help people to say ‘now is the moment for me to do this’”.
The recent concerns over meeting smoking targets in Wales come after the approaching Stoptober campaign, which encourages smokers to give up smoking for 28 days throughout October.
As a leading electronic cigarettes provider, Nicolites closely follow industry news. Offering an alternative for those looking to quit smoking, a representative for the company offered their comments:
“With initiatives and legislation proposed in order to help reduce the number of people who smoke, many smokers are looking to quit the habit. Electronic cigarettes offer an alternative for those who feel they are unable to give up smoking completely, and have also been suggested to help people quit smoking. Nicolites’ e cigarettes are similar in appearance to traditional cigarettes which help to satisfy tactile and oral cravings. Containing a measured dose of nicotine, these products also help to satisfy nicotine cravings.”
Nicolites is now the leading and most widely available brand of electric cigarette in the UK; they have formed business partnerships with many of the largest retailers to bring these wonderful innovations right on to the doorstep of every person in the country. Established in late 2007, Nicolites has grown into a multi-million pound company with international distribution networks and continues to grow at a phenomenal rate. Available at competitive prices, you can buy Nicolites online today.
As reported by Wales Online, it is thought that 23% of people in Wales smoke, and so it has been suggested that further action needs to be taken to meet the target of reducing rates of smoking to 16% within the next seven years.
The Welsh Government has outlined that, by 2020, it wishes to reduce rates of smoking by 7%. As the number of people who have stopped smoking has reduced by only 1% since the implementation of the smoking ban in 2007, it has been suggested that this target may be missed. Smoking related illnesses currently cost the NHS in Wales approximately £1 million each day, and not meeting targets could increase this figure.
Dr Ruth Hussey, Chief Medical Officer, spoke to Wales Online about introducing a public health bill which would focus on helping to improve people’s lifestyles and reduce smoking rates. She also spoke of campaigns to help people stop smoking, adding that:
“It’s something that needs continued attention and multiple ways in which we raise awareness of the harms smoking causes. Research has shown that a lot of smokers – around 70% – are ready to quit, so it’s finding the methods that help people to say ‘now is the moment for me to do this’”.
The recent concerns over meeting smoking targets in Wales come after the approaching Stoptober campaign, which encourages smokers to give up smoking for 28 days throughout October.
As a leading electronic cigarettes provider, Nicolites closely follow industry news. Offering an alternative for those looking to quit smoking, a representative for the company offered their comments:
“With initiatives and legislation proposed in order to help reduce the number of people who smoke, many smokers are looking to quit the habit. Electronic cigarettes offer an alternative for those who feel they are unable to give up smoking completely, and have also been suggested to help people quit smoking. Nicolites’ e cigarettes are similar in appearance to traditional cigarettes which help to satisfy tactile and oral cravings. Containing a measured dose of nicotine, these products also help to satisfy nicotine cravings.”
Nicolites is now the leading and most widely available brand of electric cigarette in the UK; they have formed business partnerships with many of the largest retailers to bring these wonderful innovations right on to the doorstep of every person in the country. Established in late 2007, Nicolites has grown into a multi-million pound company with international distribution networks and continues to grow at a phenomenal rate. Available at competitive prices, you can buy Nicolites online today.
Monday, November 25, 2013
New shop offers smoking alternative
Soon-to-be Arkansas City resident Cindi Campbell visited Juicy's Vapor Lounge early Monday afternoon to introduce herself to the new shop's owner.
"I'm so glad you're here," said Campbell, of Sand Springs, Okla. "I'm moving here next week and thought I'd have to stock up (on e-cigarette products) down there."
She addressed Juicy's
Vapor Lounge LLC co-owner and Ark City store manager Michael Yeager, who
opened the local shop about a month ago in a strip mall in the 1000
block of North Summit Street, next to Ionic Salon.
Campbell said she no
longer has to worry about stocking up on e-cigarettes since she
discovered Juicy's as she was driving down Summit Street on Monday.
E-cigarettes appear to be receiving a lot of attention in Ark City, as they have been throughout the country in recent years. Cigaronne cigarettes.
The devices — referred to
by Yeager as e-juice vaporizers — are shifting from being a fad to
being a mainstream way to kick the smoking habit, The Winston-Salem
Journal reported earlier this year.
They deliver smaller amounts of nicotine than cigarettes, along with vaporized juices that can be purchased in various flavors.
And the e-cigarettes
don't contain many other harsh chemical ingredients, in addition to
nicotine, that are in cigarettes, Yeager said.
"Chemical-wise,
cigarettes have over 4,000 chemicals, but the ingredients (delivered in)
our inhalers are propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, food flavoring
and nicotine," he said.
"We mix our juices with from zero milligrams of nicotine to 6, 12, 18 or 24 milligrams of nicotine."
Sales of e-cigarettes are
expected to surpass $1 billion this year and analysts at Wells Fargo
predict sales will top $10 billion in five years, according to The Daily
Ticker, the finance blog of Yahoo.com, in a posting last week.
The battery-operated
devices are atomizers consisting of a base; tiny heating coil wrapped
around wicks that soak up e-juice, then vaporize it; metal ring; glass
tube; seal ring; and clip tip used as a mouthpiece when "vaping."
Users of e-cigarettes do not refer to themselves as smokers, as a slogan in the new Ark City shop indicates:
"Stop smoking, start vaping."
Juicy's co-owners Yeager,
of Lamont, Okla., and Zac Kirby, of Stillwater, Okla., decided recently
to be a part of the growing e-cigarette market.
"It's a humongous industry just now starting to set in," Yeager said.
In July, the two men started the first of seven shops in Kansas and Oklahoma, Yeager said.
In Oklahoma, stores have
been opened in several cities, including Clinton, Enid, Ponca City (two
shops), Stillwater and Weatherford.
The Juicy's in Ark City is the most recent to open and is their only Kansas store, he said.
Yeager and his assistant manager, Kelsey Keyworth, have been busy since the shop opened.
They have waited on many
customers and potential customers — recent non-smokers, usually — by
answering questions about the technology of e-cigarettes.
They also sell product components including "tanks" — small tubes — of juices mixed with nicotine, batteries, coils and wicks.
The Ark City shop has a comfortable seating area with a TV across the room from the shop's sales counter and product shelves.
On a low table, surrounded by chairs and couches, are dozens of small tanks, or tubes, of different e-juice flavors.
It is called the "tester
table" and potential customers can try out as many flavors as they want
before deciding on a purchase, Yeager said.
The shop offers 70
e-juice flavors in all, including various fruit and dessert flavors such
as blackberry, blueberry, cherry limeade, sour grape, orange cream,
apple pie, and banana pudding; a few drink flavors, including rum and
coke; and 10 cigarette flavors, including Marlboro, Cowboy Menthol and
Midnight Toke.
Yeager said he doesn't like the term e-cigarette because it implies a product that is disposable.
But the battery-operated devices offered at Juicy's can last for months, or "as long as you take care of them."
"This is probably the
best product on the market, by far, to stop smoking," said Yeager,
himself a former smoker who became sold on e-cigarettes after his
business partner gave him one to try.
"It seemed to me one of
the products that takes care of nicotine craving and the habit of
smoking or having to have something in your hand," he said.
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
80% of teens in favour of standardised cigarette packaging, survey shows
Nearly eight in ten teenagers in Britain think the government
should introduce standardised cigarette packaging such as that used in Australia according to a survey published as peers prepare cross-party moves to revive proposals shelved by David Cameron.
Most teenagers in Australia, where packs are already almost covered in graphic warnings, believe this makes people less likely to smoke and want to see such measures taken in the rest of the world, said the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
The charity claimed health warnings on UK packs were "not up to the job" as it published results from its poll of 2000 13-18-year-olds in the UK and 500 in Australia, which last year became the first country to introduce tobacco packaging in a uniform brown colour along with the brand name and health warnings.
The coalition decided to put such measures on ice in Britain in July, saying ministers needed time to assess the impact such measures had had in Australia.
The BHF survey said just 36% of UK teenagers were deterred by current packs compared to 48% in Australia and that 77% of those quizzed in Britain thought the UK should have standardised packs. Australian teenagers supported the new packaging in their country (59%) and 66% wanted other countries to follow suit.
The charity said that "worryingly", 10% of British teenagers thought some cigarette brands were healthier than others - double the percentage of their Australian counterparts.
Simon Gillespie, its chief executive, said: "The message from our young people is loud and clear: current health warnings aren't up to the job and the UK government must step up to the mark and introduce standardised packs.
"Smoking kills 100,000 people in the UK every year and we simply can't wait any longer for legislation. Australia has led the way on standardised packs, the Scottish government has committed, and now the rest of the UK must act to protect future generations from a deadly habit."
Lib Dem Baroness Tyler, Conservative Lord McColl, crossbencher Baroness Finlay and Labour's Lord Faulkner will try to amend the Children and Families Bill at its Lords committee stage, which begins on Wednesday, so as to force the coalition into action. Finlay and Faulkner will also try to make it illegal for drivers to allow smoking in a private car when children are present.
Most teenagers in Australia, where packs are already almost covered in graphic warnings, believe this makes people less likely to smoke and want to see such measures taken in the rest of the world, said the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
The charity claimed health warnings on UK packs were "not up to the job" as it published results from its poll of 2000 13-18-year-olds in the UK and 500 in Australia, which last year became the first country to introduce tobacco packaging in a uniform brown colour along with the brand name and health warnings.
The coalition decided to put such measures on ice in Britain in July, saying ministers needed time to assess the impact such measures had had in Australia.
The BHF survey said just 36% of UK teenagers were deterred by current packs compared to 48% in Australia and that 77% of those quizzed in Britain thought the UK should have standardised packs. Australian teenagers supported the new packaging in their country (59%) and 66% wanted other countries to follow suit.
The charity said that "worryingly", 10% of British teenagers thought some cigarette brands were healthier than others - double the percentage of their Australian counterparts.
Simon Gillespie, its chief executive, said: "The message from our young people is loud and clear: current health warnings aren't up to the job and the UK government must step up to the mark and introduce standardised packs.
"Smoking kills 100,000 people in the UK every year and we simply can't wait any longer for legislation. Australia has led the way on standardised packs, the Scottish government has committed, and now the rest of the UK must act to protect future generations from a deadly habit."
Lib Dem Baroness Tyler, Conservative Lord McColl, crossbencher Baroness Finlay and Labour's Lord Faulkner will try to amend the Children and Families Bill at its Lords committee stage, which begins on Wednesday, so as to force the coalition into action. Finlay and Faulkner will also try to make it illegal for drivers to allow smoking in a private car when children are present.
Smoking in pregnancy results in children having smaller brain
These findings are according to newly published research, which had
investigated over two hundred Dutch children between the ages of six and
eight.
Researchers found that tobacco disrupts the development of the nervous system of the fetus. This happens partially because it blocks the growth of neurons and to some extent because smoking makes the blood vessels of the fetus narrow.
In the study, half of the mothers smoked but half did not. The mothers, who smoked constantly, found that even after their child was eight years old, they still had drastically smaller brains. Likewise, higher amounts of depression and anxiety were present since their brains’ superior frontal cortex, the part which controls mood swings, had been created more poorly.
However, there was no clear link between the amount of cigarettes smoked. Participants smoked between one and nine per day, still it was noted that the length of time the mother-to-be was smoking was vital. A total of 17 women quit smoking once they found out they were pregnant. Research indicated that these children were not affected by their mother’s past addiction if they stopped early enough.
“Importantly, brain development in offspring of mothers who quit smoking during pregnancy resembled that of [mothers who never smoked] with no smaller brain volumes and no thinning of the cortex,” said head researcher Hanan El Marroun.
For the study, the children had to have MRI scans done. “Children exposed to tobacco throughout pregnancy have smaller total brain volumes and smaller cortical grey matter volumes,” El Marroun said and then added, “Continued prenatal tobacco exposure was associated with cortical thinning, primarily in the superior frontal, superior parietal and precentral cortices.”
Commenting on the research, Dr. Simon Newell of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in London said, “What was striking about this study was the alarming effect smoking had on the brain over six years later.”
Researchers found that tobacco disrupts the development of the nervous system of the fetus. This happens partially because it blocks the growth of neurons and to some extent because smoking makes the blood vessels of the fetus narrow.
In the study, half of the mothers smoked but half did not. The mothers, who smoked constantly, found that even after their child was eight years old, they still had drastically smaller brains. Likewise, higher amounts of depression and anxiety were present since their brains’ superior frontal cortex, the part which controls mood swings, had been created more poorly.
However, there was no clear link between the amount of cigarettes smoked. Participants smoked between one and nine per day, still it was noted that the length of time the mother-to-be was smoking was vital. A total of 17 women quit smoking once they found out they were pregnant. Research indicated that these children were not affected by their mother’s past addiction if they stopped early enough.
“Importantly, brain development in offspring of mothers who quit smoking during pregnancy resembled that of [mothers who never smoked] with no smaller brain volumes and no thinning of the cortex,” said head researcher Hanan El Marroun.
For the study, the children had to have MRI scans done. “Children exposed to tobacco throughout pregnancy have smaller total brain volumes and smaller cortical grey matter volumes,” El Marroun said and then added, “Continued prenatal tobacco exposure was associated with cortical thinning, primarily in the superior frontal, superior parietal and precentral cortices.”
Commenting on the research, Dr. Simon Newell of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in London said, “What was striking about this study was the alarming effect smoking had on the brain over six years later.”
Smoking Affects Molecular Mechanisms And Thus Children’s Immune Systems
The Leipzig Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research has gained
new insights on the influence of tobacco smoke in utero. For the first
time, it could be demonstrated with smoking pregnant women and their
children, how exposure to tobacco smoke affects the development of human
immune system on molecular level. The focus thereby was on microRNA – a
short, single-stranded RNA molecule that is now recognised as playing
an important role in gene regulation.
For some time now, the impact of environmental stressors during pregnancy on allergy risk among new-born children is a main research topic at Leipzig Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ). As part of the long-term study LINA, environmental immunologists from Leipzig have been focussing on tobacco smoke as an environmental stressor. The main objective for Dr Gunda Herberth was to reveal the influence of tobacco smoke on the development of children’s immune systems – at molecular level. From the results that were recently published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, one thing is certain: “For the first time we were able to describe the effect of prenatal environmental stressors on the regulation of microRNA.”
Former studies have already proven that smoking during pregnancy can harm the unborn child: Newborns from smoking mothers have shown low birth weights and impaired lung functions; later on in life respiratory diseases, diabetes type II, asthma or cardiovascular diseases were also more common. However, the exact molecular mechanisms and processes that are behind such developments still struggle researchers.
For this reason, Dr. Gunda Herberth and Dr. Irina Lehmann from the UFZ decided to address the relatively recent research area of microRNA. From the early 1990´s these cell components started to become more and more of a focus in molecular and cell biology. In the meantime, for humans more than 1,200 different short, single-stranded RNA molecules have been named, some of them playing an important role in immune response. Among others, they have a considerable influence on the differentiation of regulatory T cells (Treg cells), which in turn prevent an overactive immune system and thus autoimmune diseases. If there are insufficient Treg cells or if their function is impaired, the self-regulatory function of the immune system will be reduced, possibly resulting in allergies.
To investigate the relationship between smoking mothers during pregnancy on the one hand and their children´s risk of developing allergies on the other, the scientists from Leipzig examined microRNA-223, microRNA-155 and regulatory T cells – not only in the blood samples of pregnant women (36 weeks pregnant) but also at birth in the cord blood of their babies. At the same time, questionnaires were filled out and urine samples of the pregnant women were tested to substantiate the effect from exposure to tobacco smoke and/or from volatile organic compounds resulting from smoking. From the pool of mothers participating in the LINA-study, 315 mothers (6.6 percent of whom were smokers) and 441 children were consulted in these investigations.
The focus was on miR-223 and miR-155, because their role in regulating T cells had already been proven. “What we are now interested in finding out”, explains Dr. Gunda Herberth , “is whether or not these microRNAs link exposure to smoke, regulatory T cells and the risk of developing allergies.”
By measuring the concentration of these microRNAs as well as the number of regulatory T cells in maternal and cord blood it could be shown that a high exposure to inhaled volatile organic compounds (VOCs) associated with tobacco smoke coincides with high values for miR-223. At the same time it was also found that increased values for maternal and umbilical cord blood miR-223 correlate with low regulatory T-cell numbers. Finally, it could be shown that low regulatory T-cell numbers in umbilical cord blood was an indication that children exposed to tobacco smoke were more likely to develop an allergy before the age of three compared to those children with normal values for miR-223 and Treg cells. Furthermore, the probability of developing eczema was almost twice as high for these children.
“After already being able to demonstrate the influence of prenatal smoking on regulatory T-cell numbers in cord blood from our LINA study, the current epidemiological investigation delves even deeper into molecular processes”, Dr. Gunda Herberth and Dr. Irina Lehmann resume. “Now”, the immunologists from Leipzig explicate, “we will know more about the molecular processes that trigger off stressors from smoke during pregnancy.” Thus, for the first time the association between prenatal environmental stressors and the regulation of microRNA is described. In this respect, the current Helmholtz study opens the door to further research on the role of microRNA in terms of how the human immune system reacts to environmental stressors.
For some time now, the impact of environmental stressors during pregnancy on allergy risk among new-born children is a main research topic at Leipzig Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ). As part of the long-term study LINA, environmental immunologists from Leipzig have been focussing on tobacco smoke as an environmental stressor. The main objective for Dr Gunda Herberth was to reveal the influence of tobacco smoke on the development of children’s immune systems – at molecular level. From the results that were recently published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, one thing is certain: “For the first time we were able to describe the effect of prenatal environmental stressors on the regulation of microRNA.”
Former studies have already proven that smoking during pregnancy can harm the unborn child: Newborns from smoking mothers have shown low birth weights and impaired lung functions; later on in life respiratory diseases, diabetes type II, asthma or cardiovascular diseases were also more common. However, the exact molecular mechanisms and processes that are behind such developments still struggle researchers.
For this reason, Dr. Gunda Herberth and Dr. Irina Lehmann from the UFZ decided to address the relatively recent research area of microRNA. From the early 1990´s these cell components started to become more and more of a focus in molecular and cell biology. In the meantime, for humans more than 1,200 different short, single-stranded RNA molecules have been named, some of them playing an important role in immune response. Among others, they have a considerable influence on the differentiation of regulatory T cells (Treg cells), which in turn prevent an overactive immune system and thus autoimmune diseases. If there are insufficient Treg cells or if their function is impaired, the self-regulatory function of the immune system will be reduced, possibly resulting in allergies.
To investigate the relationship between smoking mothers during pregnancy on the one hand and their children´s risk of developing allergies on the other, the scientists from Leipzig examined microRNA-223, microRNA-155 and regulatory T cells – not only in the blood samples of pregnant women (36 weeks pregnant) but also at birth in the cord blood of their babies. At the same time, questionnaires were filled out and urine samples of the pregnant women were tested to substantiate the effect from exposure to tobacco smoke and/or from volatile organic compounds resulting from smoking. From the pool of mothers participating in the LINA-study, 315 mothers (6.6 percent of whom were smokers) and 441 children were consulted in these investigations.
The focus was on miR-223 and miR-155, because their role in regulating T cells had already been proven. “What we are now interested in finding out”, explains Dr. Gunda Herberth , “is whether or not these microRNAs link exposure to smoke, regulatory T cells and the risk of developing allergies.”
By measuring the concentration of these microRNAs as well as the number of regulatory T cells in maternal and cord blood it could be shown that a high exposure to inhaled volatile organic compounds (VOCs) associated with tobacco smoke coincides with high values for miR-223. At the same time it was also found that increased values for maternal and umbilical cord blood miR-223 correlate with low regulatory T-cell numbers. Finally, it could be shown that low regulatory T-cell numbers in umbilical cord blood was an indication that children exposed to tobacco smoke were more likely to develop an allergy before the age of three compared to those children with normal values for miR-223 and Treg cells. Furthermore, the probability of developing eczema was almost twice as high for these children.
“After already being able to demonstrate the influence of prenatal smoking on regulatory T-cell numbers in cord blood from our LINA study, the current epidemiological investigation delves even deeper into molecular processes”, Dr. Gunda Herberth and Dr. Irina Lehmann resume. “Now”, the immunologists from Leipzig explicate, “we will know more about the molecular processes that trigger off stressors from smoke during pregnancy.” Thus, for the first time the association between prenatal environmental stressors and the regulation of microRNA is described. In this respect, the current Helmholtz study opens the door to further research on the role of microRNA in terms of how the human immune system reacts to environmental stressors.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Careless disposal of smoking materials blamed for $300,000 fire
A fire that started on a backyard shed and fence and wound up causing
$300,000 in damage Thursday afternoon is being blamed on careless
disposal of smoking materials.
Fire crews were called at 1 p.m. to a fire in the 600 block of Taylor Street East to find the flames had spread to two adjacent homes, resulting in firefighters having to call for reinforcements from four additional fire stations, Saskatoon Fire and Protective Services said in a news release.
The fire was contained and brought under control in 25 minutes but both homes sustained substantial damage.
No one was injured in the incident.
Fire crews were called at 1 p.m. to a fire in the 600 block of Taylor Street East to find the flames had spread to two adjacent homes, resulting in firefighters having to call for reinforcements from four additional fire stations, Saskatoon Fire and Protective Services said in a news release.
The fire was contained and brought under control in 25 minutes but both homes sustained substantial damage.
No one was injured in the incident.
U.S. Funds New Tobacco Regulation Research Centers
A new program creating 14 first-of-a-kind research centers for
tobacco regulation in the United States was announced by the federal
government on Thursday.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. National Institutes of Health awarded a total of up to $53 million to the 14 centers for the first year, with a potential sum of more than $273 million over the next five years.
Despite decades of work to reduce tobacco use, smoking continues to be the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States. The new Tobacco Centers of Regulatory Science will conduct research to help in the development and evaluation of tobacco product regulations meant to protect public health.
Researchers will focus on seven specific areas: diversity of tobacco products, reducing addiction, reducing toxicity and carcinogenicity, harmful health consequences, communications, marketing of tobacco products, and economics and policies.
The program will be coordinated by the NIH's Office of Disease Prevention and administered by three NIH institutes: the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
The program will "bring science-based regulation to the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of tobacco products," FDA commissioner Dr. Margaret Hamburg said in an FDA news release.
The agency is also establishing science and research programs designed to increase understanding of the risks associated with tobacco use.
"While we've made tremendous strides in reducing the use of tobacco products in the U.S., smoking still accounts for one in five deaths each year, which is far too many," NIH director Dr. Francis Collins said in the news release.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. National Institutes of Health awarded a total of up to $53 million to the 14 centers for the first year, with a potential sum of more than $273 million over the next five years.
Despite decades of work to reduce tobacco use, smoking continues to be the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States. The new Tobacco Centers of Regulatory Science will conduct research to help in the development and evaluation of tobacco product regulations meant to protect public health.
Researchers will focus on seven specific areas: diversity of tobacco products, reducing addiction, reducing toxicity and carcinogenicity, harmful health consequences, communications, marketing of tobacco products, and economics and policies.
The program will be coordinated by the NIH's Office of Disease Prevention and administered by three NIH institutes: the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
The program will "bring science-based regulation to the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of tobacco products," FDA commissioner Dr. Margaret Hamburg said in an FDA news release.
The agency is also establishing science and research programs designed to increase understanding of the risks associated with tobacco use.
"While we've made tremendous strides in reducing the use of tobacco products in the U.S., smoking still accounts for one in five deaths each year, which is far too many," NIH director Dr. Francis Collins said in the news release.
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