FDA Could Ban Menthol Cigarettes

The US Food and Drug Administration is currently considering placing a ban on the use of menthol in cigarettes and tobacco products.
The FDA has joined forces with several other groups, claiming that the minty flavor entices children and young people to start smoking.
Last year, the FDA placed a ban on the sale and production of fruit flavored tobacco and related products, such as cigar wraps, using similar claims.
The National Cancer Institute recently released a study that shows that youths as well as African-Americans have more difficulty when trying to quit smoking if they are smokers of methol flavored products.
Other market analysis have shown that when tobacco prices increased, non-methol smokers cut back and began spending less on cigarettes, menthol users were undaunted by the “forced quit smoking” tactics of the government.

Tobacco display ban consultation

Efforts to ban the open display of tobacco products in Northern Ireland have moved forward after the Health |Minister announced a public consultation on the matter.

Speaking during Assembly |Question Time yesterday, Michael McGimpsey revealed he has asked Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety officials to press ahead with plans to change the way tobacco products can be sold.

Every year, 2,700 deaths in Northern Ireland are caused by smoking.


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JAPAN - INCREASED DEMAND FOR ANTI-SMOKING AID CHANTIX (CHAMPIX).

Japan - with cigarette tax increase in place, fewer smokers buying cigarettes so far..

With an increased interest in quitting - Pfizer Japan Inc. can't keep up with soaring demand for its Champix anti-smoking aid as the cigarette price hike from the beginning of this month has caused an influx of patients at smoking cessation clinics.

Pfizer said it supplied the prescription drug for about 70,000 people a month until August, but the number jumped to about 170,000 in September and the company had already supplied about 80,000 people in the first six days of October. The demand has grown far bigger than the drugmaker expected and it has asked medical institutions to postpone prescribing the drug to new patients. The company said that while it is working to increase supply, new patients may not be able to try the drug until around early next year.

The orally administered tablets block the part of the brain that receives nicotine, making it difficult for recipients to crave cigarettes, according to Pfizer. When one begins the treatment, a small dose is taken once a day. The doses are gradually increased and the medication continues for three months.

"While it was beyond my expectation that (demand for the drug) has grown this much with only an increase of about ¥100 in cigarette prices, it is troubling that I can't prescribe it to new patients," said Yoji Hirayama, a doctor at Tokyo Medical University Hospital.

GOING SMOKELESS tobacco

60 MINUTES:

GOING SMOKELESS

As cigarette sales plunge, tobacco companies are marketing smokeless products to skirt smoking bans and keep customers.

Smokeless tobacco is not a safe alternative to smoking.

It contains many of the same poisonous chemicals found in cigarettes. Cigarette can be of different brands like Lady cigarettes or Kiss cigarettes.

Using spit tobacco may lead to an increased risk of heart attack and stroke and can cause cancer, tooth decay, face disfiguration...even death.

Chew, dip or snuff. No matter what you call it, use it and the result is the same.
According to the American Cancer Society, use of chewing tobacco contributes to the more than 30,000 cases of oral cancer diagnosed each year.

Spit Tobacco is a Killer

Spit tobacco is not a safe alternative to smoking – it causes oral, esophageal and stomach cancers, and tooth and gum disease.
One in three people diagnosed with oral cancer die from it.
Spit Tobacco is Dangerous

Spit tobacco contains carcinogenic chemicals, as well as arsenic and lead, both of which cause health problems.
According to the Mayo Clinic, some spit tobacco products contain additives that increase the rate at which nicotine is absorbed into the body.
Spit Tobacco is Addictive

Compared to cigarettes, spit tobacco delivers five times as much nicotine, a highly addictive chemical.
Spit tobacco products vary. Many have added sweeteners that are attractive to young users. Beginning users usually graduate to products containing more nicotine after becoming regular users.
New evidence proves that spit tobacco use leads to smoking.

Flight attendants face soaring tension in the unfriendly skies

On one 12-hour flight, Libby Rehm of Estes Park, Colo., had the bad luck to be in a seat with a broken armrest that set off the flight attendant call button if she leaned on it. Attendants "kept getting mad at me" instead of being sympathetic, she reports.

Dev Norwood of Stockbridge, Ga., watched a fellow flier try to work while a child dropped toys over the man's seatback. The mother refused to step in, and a flight attendant told the man "he should be more tolerant," Norwood reports.

Jean Rowley of Huntington Beach, Calif., recalls a crewmember who bashed a sleeping passenger's knee with a service cart. The flier screamed in pain, and "the flight attendant never apologized," Rowley says. The man asked for a complaint form.

Tensions between fliers and cabin crews are common in today's increasingly unfriendly skies. After reportedly clashing with a passenger over an unwieldy bag last month, JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater deployed the emergency slide and grabbed headlines (along with farewell beer).

At a time when planes are as packed as sardine tins, everything from unpopular airline fees, to lack of manners, to increased flight attendant responsibilities (such as helping clean plane cabins) is sending tempers and stress levels soaring.

A recent USA TODAY online survey asking "What flight attendant behavior bothers you most?" drew 5,152 responses. "Surly demeanor" was the top vote-getter (38%), followed by "gabbing together in the back" (21%), refusal to deal with unruly passengers (20%), a "schoolmarm attitude" (12%) and slowness in serving drinks or food (9%).

"Employees of the airline industry feel underpaid and overworked, complaining about doing the work of two to three people as a reason for their sometimes surly behavior," says frequent flier Ryan Yamamoto of New York City. "I can't accept this as a valid reason. In these tough economic times, everyone feels underpaid and overworked … but most of us are just happy to have a job."

Attendants often are "barking commands," while "hiding behind the guise that their attitude is such for our benefit and safety," adds Yamamoto, who appreciates the cheerfulness of crews on airlines such as Virgin Atlantic.