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In the news ...
Tobacco Industry Continues to Spend
Billions While Public Health Shortchanged
Follow the trail of money misused by
policymakers and strategically invested by Big
Tobacco in the American Lung Association's
"State of Tobacco Control" report to discover
how the leading cause of preventable death is
often entangled in a
financial web of neglect and deceit.
The Lung Association's "State of Tobacco
Control" report tracks annual progress on key
tobacco control policies at the federal and
state level, assigning grades based on whether
laws are adequately protecting citizens from
the enormous toll tobacco use takes on lives
and the economy.
"We are faced with a
deep-pocketed, ever-evolving tobacco
industry that's determined to maintain its
market share at the expense of our kids
and current smokers," said Paul
G. Billings, American Lung Association Senior
Vice President for Advocacy and Education.
"State and federal policymakers must battle a
changing Big Tobacco and step up to fund
programs and enact policies proven to reduce
tobacco use."
The federal government's progress on tobacco
control over the past several years nearly
ground to a halt. Most notably, the Food and
Drug Administration (FDA) failed to exercise
its oversight authority allowing for the
proliferation of a new generation of tobacco
products aimed at hooking youth smokers.
"By not having a level playing field with
tobacco taxes, we're seeing market shifts from
cigarettes to lesser taxed and subsequently
more affordable tobacco products. This means
candy flavored cigars and a new wave of
smokeless products are enticing new, young
customers to become addicted to nicotine,"
continued Billings.
According to preliminary data from a report by
the National Institute on Money in State
Politics, called "Big Tobacco Wins Tax
Battles," the tobacco industry was also hard
at work making campaign contributions to
candidates for political office and
bankrolling efforts aimed at defeating ballot
initiatives. Candidates for state office
during the 2011-2012 election cycle accepted
$53.4 million and the industry spent a
whopping $46 million to defeat Proposition 29,
which would have increased California's
cigarette tax by $1.00 per pack. In addition,
according to the Center for Responsive
Politics, the tobacco industry contributed
over $3.7 million to candidates for federal
office.
"It's no wonder we're losing ground in the
fight to end tobacco-caused death and
disease," stated Billings. "Elected
officials are getting cozy with Big
Tobacco."
American Lung
Association
Smoking
thins vital part of brain - Years ago,
children were warned that smoking could stunt
their growth, but a major study shows new
evidence that long-term smoking could cause
thinning of the brain's cortex. The cortex is
the outer layer of the brain in which critical
cognitive functions such as memory, language
and perception take place. The findings also
suggest that stopping smoking helps to restore
at least part of the cortex's thickness. Montreal Neurological
Institute at McGill University and the
University of Edinburgh. Molecular
Psychiatry
1.8
million smokers likely to die from their
habit - "While Australia is a world
leader in tobacco control, the battle to
reduce the public health consequences of
tobacco use is far from over," Laureate
Professor Alan Lopez, Director, of the Global
Burden of Disease Group, University of
Melbourne said. "Our findings revealed that up
to two in every three who smoke can be
expected to die from their habit if they
don't quit. Their risk of dropping dead at
any age is three times that of non-smokers,"
he said. "It is a huge wake-up call for
Australia. We know smoking is the cause
of a wide range of diseases but we now
have direct evidence from Australia
that shows just how hazardous it
is. Even ten cigarettes a day will double your
risk of dying prematurely. Smokers greatly
underestimate or do not understand the
seriousness of these risks," said Professor
Emily Banks, Scientific Director of the Sax
Institute's 45 and Up Study. BMC Medicine
Next:
Cancer Physicians Testified
For Tobacco Companies
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