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Posted: 23-08-2012 10:02 Post subject:

First of all, 2018 is too late. Most millennials who are going to take up smoking will do so before then, even if it is illegal to sell cigarettes to anyone under 18.

Posted: 09-09-2012 07:30 Post subject:

Here's another idea to help people stop smoking.

'Stoptober' stop-smoking campaign launched in England

Smokers across England are being urged to quit for a month in a government campaign.
Research has shown that people who manage to stop smoking for that length of time are more likely not to start again.
"Stoptober" takes place for 28 days from 1 October.

England's Chief Medical Officer Professor Dame Sally Davies said it was the first time that the government had launched a "mass quit attempt".
The campaign will involve TV and radio advertising, a daily messaging service and roadshows around the country. There is also a Stoptober app and a Facebook page.

Health Minister Norman Lamb, who said he quit smoking last week, told BBC Breakfast the campaign was "a good investment in health promotion".
"I think it's well worth trying this approach," he said.
"And if we can get people working locally together collectively to give up we can have a real impact."

Robert West, director of tobacco studies at University College London, meanwhile, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that smokers tended to stop "in clumps".
"We are social animals, we are herd animals and we are influenced by each other," he said.
He added: "So I think there's good reason to believe setting it up as a mass movement, if you like, would give you a bit of extra bang for your buck."

Jean King, director of tobacco control at Cancer Research UK, which is backing the campaign, said: "Smoking accounts for one in four cancer deaths and nearly a fifth of all cancer cases so it's vital that work continues to support smokers to quit.
"Breaking the addiction is difficult, so new and innovative campaigns such as this are hugely important."
She added: "It's key that smokers don't give up trying to give up."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-19506327

Posted: 16-10-2012 23:49 Post subject:

More ammunition for the ban smoking in cars campaign.

Posted: 16-10-2012 23:58 Post subject:

So the accumulation of carbon monoxide from all the exhausts in busy traffic has the all-clear then?

Posted: 17-10-2012 00:01 Post subject:

Posted: 17-10-2012 21:20 Post subject:

Posted: 02-12-2012 08:40 Post subject:

Australia smokers given plain packs
Duncan Kennedy, BBC News, Sydney

Australia has become the first country in the world to introduce plain packaging for cigarettes.
From now, all tobacco company logos and colours will be banned from packets.
They have been replaced by a dreary, uniform, green/brown, colour accompanied by a raft of anti-smoking messages and photographs.
The only concession to the tobacco companies is their name and the name of the brand variant in small print at the bottom of the box.

"This is the last gasp of a dying industry," declared Australia's Health Minister Tanya Plibersek.
Anne Jones of the anti-smoking group Ash (Action on Smoking and Health) agrees.
"Plain packaging has taken the personality away from the pack", she says.
"Once you take away all the colour coding and imagery and everything is standardised with massive health warnings, you really do de-glamorise the product."

Cigarette packets were practically the last platform for tobacco companies to advertise themselves.
Commercials on Australian television and radio were banned in 1976. Newspapers followed in 1989.
Tobacco sponsorship of sport and cultural events was prohibited in 1992.

That left the packets themselves, which became a target for the current Labor government.
The government's efforts were led by then-Health Minister Nicola Roxon whose own father, Jack, died from a smoking-related illness when she was 10.

The government argued that with 15,000 smokers dying each year at a cost to society of AU$30bn (£19bn) it had a duty to act.
It set the target of reducing smoking levels from 16% of the population in 2007, to less than 10% by 2018.

In May 2011, Cancer Council Australia released a review of the evidence surrounding the introduction of plain packaging. The review suggested that packaging plays an important part in encouraging young people to try cigarettes.

That was followed by a telling video, released by anti-smoking campaigners, showing children discussing existing cigarette packets.
One boy says the red on one packet reminds him of his favourite car, a girl admires the pink on another packet, while another boy talks about the "heavenly" colours on his box.

The combined messages about the efficacy of logos and colours in selling cigarettes, helped prompt the government to begin its legislative push to introduce plain packaging.

Not surprisingly, the tobacco industry resisted.
A consortium of major companies, including Phillip Morris, Imperial Tobacco and British American Tobacco (BAT) came together to plan a counter punch.
That included an extensive media campaign to try to persuade the public and government of the shortcomings of plain packaging.

BAT's spokesman, Scott McIntyre, says: "Plain packaging has always been misleading and won't stop smoking because branded cigarettes will be smuggled in and because tobacco companies will have to respond to that by cutting prices to stay competitive."

Despite those arguments, last August Australia's High Court ruled in favour of the government.
It threw out technical arguments by the tobacco companies that the government was trying to "acquire" their intellectual property rights by removing logos.

"Plain packaging is a game changer," says Anne Jones, a veteran of anti-smoking campaigns.
"It means that you can take on big tobacco and win."

It's known that Britain, France, Norway, India and New Zealand have been among those following the Australian court case closely, to see if there are any lessons for similar plain packaging measures in their countries.
But Scott McIntyre of BAT says it is not that straightforward, arguing that the Australian government only won because of the peculiarities of Australian constitutional law.

But there is no doubt that tobacco companies have suffered a rare legal set back, although there could still be further action by them at the World Trade Organization.
"We don't fear that," says Anne Jones of Ash.
"Plain packaging is here to stay in Australia. We now plan to go after the ingredients contained in cigarettes."

Anti-smoking lobbyists like Anne Jones know that packaging changes alone won't significantly curb smoking, especially among established smokers.
Price, availability, information campaigns and health messages play an equally important role.

But cigarette packets will no longer be mini, mobile advertising boards and, for those working to reduce smoking levels, plain packaging is an important stage in the shift to a smoking-free society.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-20559585

Posted: 02-12-2012 13:59 Post subject:

Strewth!

Posted: 21-01-2013 08:47 Post subject:

Childhood asthma 'admissions down' after smoking ban
By Adam Brimelow, Health Correspondent, BBC News

There was a sharp fall in the number of children admitted to hospital with severe asthma after smoke-free legislation was introduced in England, say researchers.
A study showed a 12% drop in the first year after the law to stop smoking in enclosed public places came into force.
The authors say there is growing evidence that many people are opting for smoke-free homes as well.
Asthma UK says the findings are "encouraging".

Researchers at Imperial College in London looked at NHS figures going back to April 2002.
Presenting their findings in the journal Paediatrics, they said the number of children admitted to hospital with severe asthma attacks was rising by more than 2% a year before the restrictions were introduced in July 2007.
Taking that into account, they calculated the fall in admissions in the next 12 months was 12%, and a further 3% in each of the following two years. They say over the three-year period, this was equivalent of about 6,800 admissions.
The fall was seen among boys and girls of all ages, across wealthy and deprived neighbourhoods, in cities and in rural areas.

Prior to the smoke-free law much of the debate on the legislation centred on protection of bar workers from passive smoke.
At the time many critics said smokers would respond by lighting up more at home - harming the health of their families. But the authors of this study say there is growing evidence that more people are insisting on smoke-free homes.

The lead researcher, Prof Christopher Millett, said the legislation has prompted unexpected, but very welcome, changes in behaviour.
"We increasingly think it's because people are adopting smoke-free homes when these smoke-free laws are introduced and this is because they see the benefits of smoke-free laws in public places such as restaurants and they increasingly want to adopt them in their home.
"This benefits children because they're less likely to be exposed to second hand smoke."

These findings reinforce evidence on the impact of smoke-free legislation from studies in North America and Scotland, which also showed a fall in hospital admissions for children with severe asthma attacks. The law in England has also resulted in fewer admissions for heart attack.

Emily Humphreys from the health charity, Asthma UK, welcomed the findings: "This is something we campaigned for, so it is particularly encouraging that there has been a fall in children's hospital admissions for asthma since its introduction.
"We have long known that smoking and second hand smoke are harmful - they not only trigger asthma attacks which put children in hospital but can even cause them to develop the condition."

She said the need now was to do more to prevent children and young people from taking up smoking, and she repeated the charity's call for the introduction of plain packaging for tobacco

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21067532

Posted: 15-02-2013 15:14 Post subject:

Posted: 29-04-2013 07:42 Post subject:

Tobacco display ban in large shops comes into force

A ban on the display of cigarettes and other tobacco products in large shops in Scotland has come into force.
Public Health Minister Michael Matheson said the move will help prevent young people from taking up smoking.

Under the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Act 2010, the sale of cigarettes from vending machines is also banned.
Stores that do not comply could be convicted of a criminal offence or receive a fixed penalty fine.

England, Wales and Northern Ireland have already brought in similar bans to prevent large stores from displaying cigarettes and tobacco.

The Scottish government's Tobacco Control Strategy also supports the introduction of standardised packaging.
Mr Matheson said: "These bans are the right step to prevent young people in Scotland from taking up smoking.
"It is well known that smoking is associated with a range of illness and is the primary preventable cause of ill health and premature death. Each year, tobacco use is associated with over 13,000 deaths and 56,000 hospital admissions in Scotland.
"That is why it is so important that this government works to improve health by reducing the number of people who choose to smoke and evidence shows that young people exposed to the promotion of tobacco are more likely to try smoking."

The move has been welcomed by Cancer Research Scotland but the Tobacco Retailers' Alliance (TRA) - which represents more than 26,000 shopkeepers across the UK - has argued against the legislation.

And the Scottish Grocers' Federation said it will mean longer transaction times at the till and confusion over pricing.
It also believes the new laws will not make any difference and that smokers will still smoke.
John Hammond, from the federation, told BBC Scotland: "We think it's unnecessary. We don't believe that displays of cigarettes behind the counter actually influences anyone to buy cigarettes.
"There is no doubt that smoking can be harmful but it's a legal practice.
"We stock it, sell it, and will continue to do so."

Large shops are defined as those with a relevant floor area exceeding 280 square metres.
Smaller retailers have until 6 April 2015 to comply with the display ban.

etc...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-22332048

Posted: 29-04-2013 13:58 Post subject:

Don't they realise that young people WANT to smoke?

Posted: 29-04-2013 14:06 Post subject:

Posted: 31-07-2013 20:04 Post subject:

Posted: 31-07-2013 22:44 Post subject: