Russia Introduces Fines for Smoking in Public Places

Lower house of parliament in Russia on Tuesday, October 15, approved the final reading of a bill which tightens anti-smoking legislation in the country by introducing fines for smoking in public places. The initiators of the bill say that it would help to prevent teens and kids from smoking. The bill is part of a

Alaska officials say smoking down among teens

Smoking among Alaska high school students has dramatically declined in recent years, health officials said Monday. A spring survey found 40 percent fewer students are smoking compared to six years ago — 10.6 percent this year compared with 17.8 percent in 2007. Officials said that means only one in 10 students in the state reported smoking at least one cigarette during the past 30 days at the time of the survey.

“These are great numbers. It’s wonderful news,” state chief medical officer Ward Hurlburt said during a briefing in Anchorage to announce the survey findings. “We also know that there remains much work to be done. The tobacco companies continue to aggressively target young Alaskans and we need to remain vigilant in our fight to combat that message.”The survey looked at nearly 1,250 students from 43 high schools that were randomly selected.

According to the survey, Alaska Native teens continue to have a rate of smoking more than twice as high as non-Natives — 18.5 percent among Alaska Native students compared with 8 percent among non-Natives in that age group. However, the figure shows improvement over the rate of 31 percent in 2007 and more than 50 percent in 1995, said Lincoln Bean, vice chair of the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium.

“Smoking tobacco is not a part of our traditional culture in Alaska,” said Bean, who is Tlingit. He said his ex-wife died this year of smoking-related cancer. More than half of young Alaska Natives still try smoking, but many decide before they are hooked that it’s not for them, Bean said. He noted how important tobacco prevention partnerships are for fighting the use of tobacco, including the smokeless kind.

“I’m tired of seeing our people wash their face with their tears because so many people die of cancer,” he said. Among all students, use of smokeless tobacco has not declined. The survey, however, showed a decrease in alcohol and marijuana use among all students. In this year’s survey, 22.5 percent of high school students said they had consumed alcohol within the past month, compared with 39.7 percent in 2007. Regarding marijuana, 19.7 percent reported using the drug within the past month in this year’s survey, compared with 23.9 percent in 2003.

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey is conducted in U.S. schools every two years, and it was conducted in Alaska by the state Department Of Health and Social Services. Comparable national data is not yet available, and officials say Alaska’s survey results cannot be compared with other states.

In other behaviors, the Alaska survey showed that suicide remains a serious concern. In the past 12 months, 8.4 percent attempted suicide, compared with 10.7 percent in 2007. Another area of concern is obesity, although there was a dip in the rates compared with six years ago. In this year’s survey, 26.2 of youths polled were overweight or obese, compared with 27.3 percent in 2007.

59% of American Indians in Minnesota Smoke

Latest data shows that a lifestyle practice among American Indians in Minnesota caused a public health crisis which means they consume a lot of cigars, cigarettes, chewing tobacco, snuff, pipes. In the Tribal Tobacco Use Project Survey started in 2009 and in it participated 3,000 American Indians aged 18 and older from 7 reservations in

Coronado to Consider No-Smoking Ordinance

The ordinance will ban smoking tobacco in public spaces, such as parks, beaches and sidewalks. Restaurants and cafes that uses city sidewalks as outdoor dining areas are also affected.

The Coronado City Council will consider an amendment to the municipal code to ban smoking on public properties, such as parks, beaches and sidewalks at the 4 p.m. public meeting Tuesday.

The city is considering the smoking ban after complaints from residents about smokers on sidewalks and outdoor dining areas, said Lorenzo Hitley, director of tobacco program at Communities Against Substance Abuse. The group has lobbying for the smoking ban.

Coronado is following steps that other cities in the county have taken. Del Mar and El Cajon both have passed no-smoking ordinances in recent years. So far there hasn’t been any opposition to the proposed law in Coronado, Hitley said.

“I haven’t seen any concerns,” he said. “No public testimony against it.”

According to Community Against Substance Abuse, 67 percent of residents who took the survey on the city’s website support the law.

Tuesday’s afternoon meeting is the first reading and public comment of the proposed ordinance. If everything goes well, then a second draft will be presented and voted on at the Oct. 15 city council meeting and the law would go into effect Jan. 1, Hitley said.

Students Should Lead the Way During Stoptober

Those who every morning do walk up the same stretch of pavement outside Farringdon station on their way to work in order to enjoy fresh air cannot enjoy it on the whole way as there is always a crowd of people puffing on cigarettes. You may wonder why? You see smokers everywhere; not only congregated

Kids Around World Recognize Logos of Cigarette Brands

The marketing of cigarette brands has successfully reached children most of all in low- and middle-income countries. Study made in 1991 revealed that 91 percent of 6-year-old children surveyed were able to precisely identify Old Joe, the cartoon character representing Camel cigarettes. The figure is equal to the number of children who precisely identified Mickey

Board of Health approves smoking ban on bar, restaurant patios

City council will soon debate whether to ban smoking on patios and other outdoor spaces across Toronto.

The city’s Board of Health approved a motion Monday that suggested the city ban smoking in:
-public building entrances and exits
-sports fields
-specific amenities in parks
-swimming beaches
-public squares
-bar and restaurant patios
-hospital grounds

Toronto Public Health said they spoke with bar and restaurant owners, property managers, the hospital sector, sports groups, health and community-based organizations, universities, colleges and students, members of the public and city staff.

The health agency said the goal of the motion was to “improve protection from second-hand smoke” and “decrease the visibility of smoking in public places.”

City council could debate the issue as early as October 8.

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford said Monday that he “hates the smell” of cigarette smoke but will not support a ban on smoking cigarettes in outdoor spaces.

“I don’t like it but I don’t like the government getting involved,” he said. “How far are they going to push this? Are they going to make the city like eventually one day smoke free? You can’t even smoke anywhere? That’s where it’s going.”

“No I’m not going to have a nanny state that the government’s going to come in and tell you, you can do this or do that, so no, you know, we have enough restrictions on smoking as is,” he added.

The Manitoba government became the first provincial government in Canada to ban smoking on all its public beaches and playgrounds in March 2013.