Smoking toddler highlights Indonesia's tobacco addiction

JAKARTA — A new video of a smoking Indonesian toddler has emerged to shock health experts and provide further graphic illustration of the Southeast Asian country's growing addiction to tobacco.The parents of a two-year-old boy seen smoking in a clip posted on The Sun newspaper's website are to be investigated, Indonesian officials said after the video drew worldwide attention.

Chubby Ardi Rizal laughs and responds to the adults around him as he sits on his plastic tricycle and inhales deeply from frequent drags on a cigarette.His father reportedly gave him his first cigarette when he was 18 months old and now he smokes 40 a day. His mother says he beats his head against the wall unless he gets nicotine, but his father insists he is "healthy".

Child Protection Ministry official Heru Kasidi said the family would be investigated for what would be considered a clear case of child abuse in many countries.

It's the second time this year Indonesia has been embarrassed by such media coverage.Another video was posted on the Internet last month showing an Indonesian boy aged about four puffing on a locally made clove cigarette, blowing smoke rings and swearing with the encouragement of adults.Weak regulations -- Indonesia is the only country in Southeast Asia not to have signed the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control -- have enabled tobacco companies to target young Indonesians with advertising and events promotions.

US singer Kelly Clarkson dropped tobacco sponsorship for her Jakarta concert in April after anti-smoking groups protested on the grounds that she was effectively encouraging her young fans to smoke.Other artists such as Jamiroquai, Anggun, Incubus and James Blunt have allowed their Indonesian shows to be used as vehicles for tobacco marketing.

Anti-smoking activists and health experts say Indonesia is a paradise for the tobacco industry, which has been aggressively expanding sales in the country of about 240 million people.

"The regulations on the tobacco industry in Indonesia are weak. They protect the shareholders in the industry more than the people," activist Kartono Mohamad said.

"The people in Indonesia are fighting alone against the tobacco industry, the government and the policy makers. It's one against three."According to the World Health Organisation, cigarette consumption in the Southeast Asian archipelago soared 47 percent in the 1990s.Almost 70 percent of men over 20 years of age smoke, and regular smoking among boys aged 15 to 19 increased from 36.8 percent in 1997 to 42.6 percent in 2000.

But anti-smoking initiatives have floundered in the face of the powerful local tobacco industry, which employs scores of thousands of people and generates more than six billion dollars a year for the government.A bill establishing tobacco as an addictive substance was about to be signed into law last year when officials realised the pertinent clause had been mysteriously deleted. The case is under investigation.

The government has increased excise taxes but prices remain extremely low by international standards, with a pack of 20 costing little more than a dollar.

Even so, studies have shown that poor families spend more on cigarettes than on books and education.

In another blow to anti-tobacco activists, lawmakers have strongly opposed a plan to cut cigarette production by five percent to about 248 billion sticks this year on the grounds that it would hurt local producers.Foreign makers like British American Tobacco and Philip Morris have long recognised the opportunities in Indonesia.

In March, Philip Morris's local unit, PT HM Sampoerna, the country's largest producer, announced a net profit increase of 31 percent to 5.08 trillion rupiah (548.64 million dollars) last year.

In the absence of tough government regulations Muslim clerics recently issued a fatwa against smoking. But analysts said the religious edict was likely to have about as much effect as regulations banning smoking in bars and restaurants, which are widely ignored."More and more Indonesian children have become victims of the cigarette industry," Indonesian Child Protection Commission chairman Hadi Supeno said.

"There are many children under five years of age who have started smoking. A decade ago, the average age of beginner smokers was 19 but a recent study found that the average is seven."

Tobacco check finds all in compliance

Sheriff John E. Zaruba announced Wednesday that in their ongoing effort to reduce access children have to tobacco products in a retail environment, DuPage County sheriff's deputies, accompanied by underage teens, recently completed the third of three rounds of tobacco compliance checks at 50 retail outlets in unincorporated DuPage County.

All retailers were found compliant and did not sell tobacco to the minor who was under age 18. If the retailer was found in noncompliance, the retailer would be given an ordinance violation that could result in a $200 fine.

These checks are made possible by a grant from the Illinois Liquor Control Commission. Terms of the grant require deputies to conduct educational programs for tobacco retailers prior to verifying their compliance with a local ordinance forbidding the sale of tobacco products to anyone under age 18.

"With all the health warnings out about smoking, teens continue to get hooked on tobacco even though it is bad for them," Zaruba said. "The sheriff's office conducts these compliance checks at retail establishments in DuPage County in an effort to keep tobacco out of the hands of minors in hopes that the never start to use tobacco products."

The sheriff's office has participated in the "Kids Can't Buy 'Em Here" program for the past nine years.

Peter Nichols: Switchblades and brass knuckles help sell cigarettes

Peter Nichols-Sixteen-year-old kid walks into a convenience store, grabs a 12-ounce can of Dr Pepper, a bag of Doritos and walks up to the counter. "Pack of Marlboros." The clerk scans the soda, bag of chips and the cigarettes. "That's seven twenty-eight." Kid hands the clerk four bills, collects his change and exits the store.

A similar but more eye-popping story unfolds in the city of Watsonville. A store owner willingly sells switchblade knives and brass knuckles at his chain of discount cigarette stores, in a city plagued by gang violence. Parents shudder at the thought of kids cruising their neighborhood strip malls buying soda pop, candy and Michael Jackson posters over the same counter gang members buy implements of mayhem.

Without the gang hardware, the scenes aren't really different. They play out time and again in this and many other communities.And what is it that should alarm parents? The switchblades? Brass knuckles? Imitation assault rifles? Well ... yes and no.

Stores like these have no business in any community, mainly because youth will inevitably have access to tobacco. A cigarette smoker is far more likely to die from smoking than from being stabbed or bludgeoned to death by brass knuckles. In fact, smoking kills more people in the United States every year than AIDS, illegal drugs, alcohol, car crashes, suicides and murders combined Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to a 2008 survey by the Tobacco Education Coalition, a county group dedicated to reducing tobacco sales to minors, underage youth can expect to be successful buying cigarettes in one out of every six local stores. Any 16-year-old kid who is carded and turned away by a responsible retailer won't have far to go to find an irresponsible one sympathetic to his wants.

From the point of view of that retailer, the kid's going to get his cigarettes one way or another, and someone's going to get that $5. And there's little downside. Law enforcement everywhere is understaffed and overburdened with higher-profile crimes. At this time there are no resources available to support enforcement of laws against selling tobacco to minors. It's not a priority, unless switchblades are involved.

Tobacco companies know youth are the future of their profits. Creating opportunities to introduce young people to the glamour, excitement -- or whatever -- of smoking is an ongoing strategy. The more governments act to control tobacco sales, the more creative are the marketing schemes to sell it. So the Watsonville store owner tried to create an environment youth could relate to. One with pop culture posters, imitation guns, candy, soda pop, forbidden toys ... and forbidden cigarettes. Youth are drawn to the sweet and forbidden.

To address the concern of sales to youth, the coalition proposes an ordinance, proven successful in over 60 California counties and cities. It requires sellers to be licensed. The Tobacco Retail License fees would provide resources for sting operations to ensure retailers operate within the law. Violators would face fines and suspension or revocation of their licenses.The county Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission unanimously passed a resolution in 2009 and unanimously reaffirmed it this month, urging the Board of Supervisors to adopt such an ordinance.

It's time the county of Santa Cruz took action to protect youth from clever tobacco marketers, and irresponsible retailers. And in the city of Watsonville, it's time to put one of them out of business.

Peter Nichols is the chairman of the Santa Cruz County Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission.

A Lot of Celebrities Utilize a New Type of Cigarettes

You can commonly state if a product is about to be a fortunate or not when stars can be seen utilizing it. Without saying any names, there have been some actually great profile stars that have been noticed utilizing the electronic cigarettes not long ago. Even stars are not unaffected to the reality that they are addicts to tobacco smoking is a very difficult thing to implement in most cases.

Even the president, of America has had a complicated time eluding this habit. Possibly he should also offer the cigarettes an attempt if he hasn’t already. It could be that the stars that are utilizing the electronic cigarettes do so because they possibly can be starting more socially available than using this habit.

Even being popular might not get you an easy pass to use this habit around other individuals that just hate to be showed to the second hand smoking and the smell. Some popular individuals, as the majority of us comprehend, are actually very take care of their condition and the people around them and would not take positively to other popular people who suppose they can spoil a place just because of they are smoking.

It can be that popular individuals being spotted utilizing the electronic cigarettes will assist advance the products in a more good light. Stars can provide attention to all kinds of reasons and products. The majority of individuals that use tobacco really suppose that utilizing an electronic cigarette is a better choice.

It does not show the identical type of smoke that cigarettes do, but a smoke that disperses almost as rapidly as it occurs. This kind of cigarettes does not even provide any smoke until the customer makes a breath on it in the identical way they make using the tobacco cigarettes. There is no requirement to provide lighting to this kind of cigarettes because it works utilizing a particular battery stick and doesn’t need lighting.

This kind of cigarettes also does not have all of the bad components that simple cigarettes have either. Since it is not working as the ordinary components of the real cigarettes, it also does not provide tarpaulin which is one of the dangerous components of real smoking either.

The social shame connected to smoking the cigarettes could very well be the cause that a lot of stars are starting to utilize this kind of cigarettes constantly instead the real ones. This is not to state that everybody should start to utilize this kind of cigarettes just because popular individuals are implementing it, but if individuals already use tobacco, it can be something they would need to use for their personal advantage. No one would advice that an ordinary person start to utilize cigarettes just because popular individuals are implementing it.

So, if you want to stay tuned to the latest buzz from the film world, then use this piece of advice: never forget that today the web technologies give you a truly unique chance to choose exactly what you want at the best terms which are available on the market. Strange, but most of the people don’t use this opportunity.

Unfortunately, as many other industries today, film industry is facing big problems due to the world crisis. Search Google and other search engines for “Yesterday was Dramatic, Today is Ok“. Visit social networks and check the relevant topics.

Noynoy not keen on being anti-smoking poster boy

Philippine president-apparent Senator Benigno Simeon "Noynoy" Aquino III is not keen on being a poster boy for anti-smoking advocates, at least for now.Aquino told reporters that he would stop his smoking habit at the "appropriate" time, but said there may be too much pressure on him to kick the habit at this time.

"Noong tumakbo ako, alam ng taumbayan [na] naninigarilyo ako. At the appropriate time na hihinto ako, titigil ako. So long as nako-control ako sa mga batas at wala akong naiistorbo baka parte ito ng kalayaan kong natitira," Aquino said.

(When I ran for the presidency everyone knew I was a smoker. Perhaps I will kick the habit at the appropriate time. But for now, I hope people give me this leeway, as part of my remaining rights.)Last weekend, anti-tobacco groups urged Aquino, a smoker, to be a poster boy of sorts for their anti-smoking crusade.

Even the Department of Health (DOH) said it is coming out with an administrative order to put graphic warnings in tobacco products, and is hoping for support from the country’s most powerful smoker.

But Aquino admitted there is presently so much pressure on him because of the problems he will face as incoming president.

U.S. Youth Likely To Face Greater Health Issues

Americans are not only getting fatter, but they're still smoking cigarettes and they're not exercising enough. Every few years the federal government releases the findings of its survey of health behaviors among U.S. adults. This year's report covers 2005 to 2007 — and it's not really good news. "Stubborn" is how Charlotte Schoenborn describes the health habits of U.S. adults. Schoenborn is a statistician with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which oversees and analyzes the collection of information on U.S. health behaviors.

"It's amazing how hard it is to change these personal health behaviors," despite enormous resources and education efforts to encourage more healthy behaviors, she says.

Slight Decline In Smoking And Binge Drinking

One in five adult Americans still smokes. This is only a slight decline since the late 1990s, when 23 percent of adults smoked. Additionally, binge drinking — drinking more than five drinks in one sitting — is also on the decline. However, 61 percent of adults report they are current drinkers.

White men and women drink the most, and Asian-Americans drink the least. Among those who drink, the biggest drinkers are people who have higher incomes and more education.

"People with more education are more likely to drink. I mean it’s that simple," says Schoenborn. The study finds that 74 percent of adults with a bachelor’s, master's or doctorate degree say they are current drinkers. Schoenborn says this doesn't mean these are binge drinkers at all.

Obesity Remains A Serious Problem

When it comes to exercise and weight, education also makes a difference. The more educated people are, the more likely they are to exercise and maintain a healthy weight. Even so, two-thirds of Americans are overweight or obese.

And many doctors say such unhealthful behaviors are more distressing among children. Pediatrician Amy Porter runs a weight management program for Kaiser Permanente in Southern California. She says this may be the first generation of children who may not live as long as their parents.

Porter points to what used to be considered "adult diseases," like diabetes and high blood pressure, which are now being seen in obese kids. She says she sees teenagers who have knee and joint problems so severe they need to consult orthopedists. And sleep apnea, which is often a symptom of obesity, is also showing up in record numbers among kids.

Would An Anti-Obesity Campaign Work Like Anti-Smoking?

Porter says these problems are cumulative and take their toll as children grow into adulthood. Previous research has shown that overweight children are likely to become overweight teens and overweight adults, which is why Porter wants to see a major cultural shift, a sort of "in your face" anti-obesity campaign, similar to what happened with smoking decades ago. Even though smoking has not decreased dramatically over the past decade, it has decreased enormously since the 1960s when the first anti-smoking public health campaigns began.

And the best news is among teenagers. University of Michigan social psychologist Lloyd Johnston runs an ongoing study that tracks the behavior of children between the ages of 13 and 18. He says that in 1996, 21 percent of eighth-graders were smoking. By 2009, that had dropped by nearly 70 percent, down to 6.5 percent currently smoking.

Johnston says the change was driven in part by prices and taxes on cigarettes. But he also points to successful public health messages that convinced kids that smoking was dangerous, not glamorous. "Today, we see three-quarters of teens say that they would prefer to date somebody that doesn't smoke. So, what used to be suggested as increasing your attractiveness to the opposite gender, today does exactly the opposite."

Doctors like Porter hope to see similar success with campaigns against obesity. Recent studies do indicate a plateau in the obesity epidemic, but not among the heaviest of young boys, who are only getting heavier.

DVD film about the honest opinion of teenagers regarding smoking.

Young film-makers have created a DVD to give an insight into what the youth of South Tyneside really believe about smoking.The film looks at how youngsters feel about smoking, where they buy cigarettes, and a range of other subjects connected to the tobacco trade.

In it, 16 to 18-year-olds from the Simonside Neets (young people not in education, employment or training) group and primary school children are interviewed. Headliner UK, a charity which inspires and encourages the personal development of young people through journalism, was commissioned to create the DVD by South Tyneside Primary Care Trust (PCT).

Marietta Evans is the director of public health with South Tyneside PCT, said: "We felt there was a need for more youth consultation on tobacco. Traditionally, tobacco control, cessation policies and research have been based on the assumption that by reducing adult smoking, then children will cut back too. While this approach has proved effective in reducing smoking, it is a habit picked up by children, not adults. Up to 80 per cent of smokers start before the age of 18 and become teen smokers.

By addressing that, they hope to make even more progress towards reducing smoking. in South Tyneside. Last month, the Gazette said that there were more than 200 'tab houses' in the borough – selling illegal cigarettes to children as young as eight. The council's trading standards team and partner agencies are cracking down on these houses, which are in many of the borough's residential areas.

Many of the youngsters in the DVD revealed this is one of the ways in which they obtain their cigarettes. The issue of smoking being seen as normal is also raised, and the message comes through that small children see smoking as bad and not pleasant – but this attitude can often change as they grow up.

The DVD is being used by South Tyneside PCT, through partners including the council, to raise awareness in the community and make realize the results of smoking.

Could Cigarette Butts Lower Your Home Energy Use?

A London community is studying an innovative technology which may allow for the recycling of discarded cigarette butts into home insulation. The community estimates an average of 4,000 cigarette butts are dropped in the town center daily, then collected during routine street cleanings and sent to the landfill.

Cigarette butts can come from filtered cigarette brands like Cigaronne cigarettes or non filtered Leana cigarettes.

Susan Hall of the Harrow Council told the London Evening Standard, “Cigarette butts are unsightly and add to our landfill costs. Harrow is the second best recycler in London with a rate of 44 percent, but any cost-efficient technology that drives that rate up is worth considering.”

The Harrow Council was inspired by the work of Igloo Environmental, a U.K.-based recycling company focusing on turning fiber waste streams, largely cigarette butts, into useful insulation products. The company encourages city councils to recycle the cigarette butts, citing a dramatic reduction in city expenses associated with cigarette litter and landfilling.

The idea is to divert the butts from the landfill through a sterilization and recycling process. The process removes the toxins in an industrial autoclave (typically used to clean medical equipment) sterilizing the cigarette butts. They are then broken down into their paper and fibrous material components and compacted into insulation “pillows.” The insulation pillows are used in homes to decrease energy consumption associated with heat loss.

In the U.K. alone, 30,000 tons of cigarette butts are discarded and landfilled each year from the smoking of 60 billion cigarettes, according to Igloo Environmental. The process could greatly reduce the leachate of toxins associated with rainwater runoff and landfilling, while providing a 100 percent recycled insulation product for

Cigar and pipe smoking affects directlly our lungs

Smoking cigarettes is a very complicated probelm in the entire world, there is the government that wants to raise taxes on them, there are pesons that use tobacco products, but in the end we all feel the effects of the actions that we take. Many researchers have tried to discover what are the real effects that cigarettesusage has on people.

Scientists recently explored the effects of pipe and cigar smoking on the lungs. They conclude that smoking a pipe or cigar should be considered as unhealthy to the lungs as cigarette smoking, and just as socially unacceptable.

The researchers say pipes and cigars are also a risk factor for lung damage that leads to COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). Smoking a pipe or a cigar may not be a less risky alternative to cigarettes like some people may think.

Cotinine, a byproduct of nicotine that can be measured in urine samples, can signal risk of lung disease from smoking. Researchers studied 3,528 individuals who never smoke cigarettes but did smoke pipes or cigars, discovering findings consistent with decreased lung function, that can lead to obstructive lung disease – a finding the scientists say should be considered by clinicians who should counsel patients to stop smoking.The study raises concerns for public health because of the increased incidence of tobacco use in the United States say the researchers who also advocate counseling for patients by their physicians to quit smoking pipes and cigars.

R. Graham Barr, MD, Dr.PH, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Assistant Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia Presbyterian and lead author of the study says, These findings, together with increased cotinine levels in current pipe and cigar smokers, suggest that long-term pipe and cigar smoking may damage the lungs and contribute to the development of COPD.

Physicians should consider pipe and cigar smoking a risk factor for COPD and counsel their patients to quit.”

Michael B. Steinberg, MD, MPH, of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School comments that the tobacco industry perpetrates the social acceptability of pipe and cigar smoking, linking the practice to “sophistication, affluence, education, and celebration”. Smoking pipes and cigars can lead to lung damage and COPD and should be treated as unacceptable as cigarette smoking.

Why Smoking Is Bad For You

The fact that smoking is bad for you is no secret. We'll all seen the pictures of charcoal black lungs displayed in schools and in hospital and doctors waiting rooms.

Despite these scare tactics people continue to smoke and new smokers adopt the habit every single day. Amazingly smoking can still be viewed as an adult thing to do and children continue to be influenced by this.

Their parents or guardians smoke therefore they should smoke too if they want to be really grown up - or at least that's their perception. All smokers wish they had never smoked that first lousy cigarette and shake their heads in disbelief when they see their own kids or teenagers starting to smoke.

Regardless of how you take tobacco it's dangerous. Smoking is the most popular method for people to use tobacco and as such has received massive coverage in both the media and from the medical profession.

Some people chew it, others inhale it as snuff but the majority smokes it in the form of cigars and cigarettes - which is the habit we've all come to know and hate as smokers

R.J. Reynolds to pay $325M in settlement

R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. said Tuesday it has entered into a settlement with the Canadian federal, provincial and territorial governments to resolve all the government’s claims related to cigarette smuggling in Canada during the 1980s and 1990s.

As part of the settlement, Reynolds is the manufacturer of the well known Camel tobacco product and has agreed to pay the governments $325 million.

Additionally, should Reynolds sell tobacco products in Canada in the future, the company has agreed to adopt packaging, marking and other measures that will help the Canadian governments in their efforts to combat the movement of contraband tobacco products in Canada.

R.J. Reynolds, based in Winston-Salem, does not conduct business in the Canadian tobacco market. Reynolds and its parent company, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc., sold its international businesses to Japan Tobacco Inc. in 1999.

In a separate matter, Northern Brands International Inc., a subsidiary of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings, has entered into a plea agreement with the Ministry of the Attorney General of Ontario.

As a result of its plea to one count of conspiracy to aid others in the sale and possession of contraband cigarettes in the early 1990s, Northern Brands is required to pay a fine of $75 million. Northern Brands ceased being an operating company in 1997.

Chiropractic Four Essentials of Health

To understand the four essentials of health, we have to know the essentials of life. Many things may appear in mind making part of different categories, such as social or psychological. Anyway in terms of physiological essentials for survival, there are four:
1. FOOD
2. WATER
3. OXYGEN
4. NERVE IMPULSE
How do the ESSENTIALS appear? If one of them would stop, we would die. They are the most important things from our lives. If any of them are interfered with, your health is not at its optimum potential.

FOOD

Food is the fuel and building block for growth and reproduction of cells and tissue. It consists of protein, fats and carbohydrates. If any of these were to stop you would die. If their balance is interfered with, your health potential is not at its optimum. For example, if you ate high fat or sugar foods (french fries, doughnuts, etc.) what would be the possible condition of your arteries in 10-20 years? If you said "Clogged up with fat", you are right. Result = lower health potential.

WATER

Fluids - 75% of your body is water. It is used in almost every body process. If you stop fluid intake, you die. If you drink unhealthy fluids (caffeine, alcohol, additives, preservatives, dyes, etc.), or not enough fluids, your body's health potential is decreased.

OXYGEN

Oxygen is also used in almost every reaction of the body, and is carried through the body by the pulmonary (lungs), and circulatory (blood) systems. Interference to these systems could stop oxygen and result in death. We should exercise regularly and breathe deeply to increase our oxygenation to cells. Research finds that oxygen deprivation can cause anything from fatigue to cancer. If oxygenation is not at its optimum, neither is your health potential.

NERVE IMPULSE

Nerve impulse is the most commonly overlooked essential for life and health. Nerve impulse is an electrochemical charge transmitted by the brain through the nervous system to the body. It is the life force that keeps us alive and "charged". ALL BODY FUNCTIONS are dependent on this life force and brain impulse. Cells must be electrically charged in order to vibrate and function. If your brain stopped (generator for electrical impulses) you would die. In fact, to be declared legally dead, brain impulse must stop. If you severed the nerve to your heart, would it stop? How about your stomach, lungs, or hand? What if you just interfere with the normal nerve transmission? Would these organs and tissues function at their optimum potential?

One of the major causes for such nerve interference is a misalignment of the spine commonly termed by chiropractors as a subluxation. Subluxations can interfere with the nerve, the spinal cord, and reflex nerve pathways, resulting in abnormal function and a lower health potential. If your spine is subluxated you cannot be at your optimum health potential, regardless of how good your food, water, and oxygen is, because you are still interfering with one of the essentials of life and health.

The chiropractor's primary role is to locate and correct subluxations, thus removing nerve interference and allowing the body to restore its normal function. It is not a treatment for symptoms or a cure for disease, but merely a way of improving the body's optimum health potential, through proper nerve integrity. This is why everyone should see a chiropractor from the time they are born, and regularly throughout their lifetime. Maintenance of a healthy spine means optimum nerve integrity and optimum health potential.

So remember, to achieve and maintain optimum health potential, maintain the most optimum quality of the four essentials of health and life - food, water, oxygen and nerve impulse. But pay special attention to the most neglected one - nerve impulse - by having your spine checked for subluxations by a chiropractor. It could be the answer you have been searching for.