Women Who Don’t Smoke Face Greater Obesity Risk, Scottish Researchers Find

Women who have never smoked face a higher risk of being overweight or obese than those who light up, according to a study by Scottish researchers in today’s British Medical Journal.

The findings from the study of 3,613 Scottish women who were followed for 28 years suggest that higher smoking rates decades ago masked the true extent of obesity, the researchers wrote. Declines in tobacco use in industrialized countries since the early 1970s may help explain the increase in the number of people who are overweight or obese, they said.

The study also concluded that obesity was more prevalent in poorer women, who had higher death rates from related conditions, than in wealthier ones. Women in the study who avoided smoking and kept their weight in check had the lowest death rates, regardless of whether they were rich or poor.

“There is a general sense that if you live on the wrong side of the tracks, you are bound to be less healthy,” Laurence Gruer, the lead researcher and director of public health science for NHS Health Scotland in Glasgow, said in a telephone interview. “This shows that’s not necessarily the case.”

Nicotine, a stimulant found in tobacco, may eventually explain more about the relationship between smoking and obesity rates, Gruer said. Nicotine appears to suppress the appetite of some smokers and may play a role in why some people who quit smoking go on to gain weight, he said.


Read More

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-28/women-who-don-t-smoke-face-greater-obesity-risk-scottish-researchers-find.html

Smokers aged nine in UK’s poorest town

The average age to start smoking in Britain's most deprived town is just nine, according to a National Health Service survey cited Thursday by The Sun.

But many are even younger. One boy got hooked aged three because his grandparents thought it was funny to give him cigarettes.

The shock findings came from Merthyr Tydfil, in South Wales -- blighted by few jobs, poor wages and dependence on state benefits.

"Unfortunately, it is realistic. I had a patient who started between two and three. His parents gave him cigarettes because they thought it was funny," researcher Tracey Bowen said.

The study was carried out after medics noticed the high number of tobacco-related illnesses in the former industrial town.

"These figures are truly alarming. Childhood smoking is quite rare -- less than one percent of people under 11 smoke regularly -- so this is unusual," said smoking expert and Birmingham University professor Paul Aveyard. "It is worrying, as you become more addicted to smoking the earlier you start. Starting younger is also associated with a higher risk of smoking-related diseases."

Merthyr, population 55,000, has one of the UK's lowest life-expectancy rates and one of the highest rates of people claiming health-related state benefits

Read more:
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3457234/Smokers-take-up-habit-aged-9-on-average-in-UKs-poorest-town.html

2010 State of Tobacco Control Report

The American Lung Association has released its 2010 State of Tobacco Control report. Florida and Georgia both received F's in more than on category.

Resident Tommy Lewis kicked the habit years ago and says he never looked back."I smoked from the time I was 20 years old til about the time I was 30, and I quit about 20 years ago and have not smoked since. I put then down one day and never picked them back up" said Lewis.

The report says the economic cost of smoking in Georgia is just under 6 billion dollars while Florida comes in at more than 12 billion.

Florida and Georgia both received failing grades for Tobacco prevention and spending control. For Smoke-Free Air, Florida maintained its B average while Georgia maintained a C.

Non-smoker Sarah Bishop says, "I think it's an unhealthy habit. I've know a lot of people who have suffered health risks from it. I know my step day was told if he had another cigarette it would kill him."

The Lung Association report says more than 28-thousand deaths in Florida and more than 10-thousand in Georgia are related to smoking.

A total of eight states received all "F's" ... and while many received higher scores, no state on the report received all A's.

Thomas Carr who is the Director of National Policies for The American Lung Association says, "Georgia got three F's and a C and Florida got two F's and B and a D. I think Florida actually is a good example of where some of the policies are starting to have an impact."

Read More

http://www.wctv.tv/news/headlines/2010_State_of_Tobacco_Control_Report__114404204.html

Kids living in apartments at risk of passive tobacco smoking

Children living in multi-unit apartment buildings are at higher risk of passive tobacco smoking than those living in detached houses, a new study in the Jan 2011 issue of Pediatrics suggests.

The study led by Karen Wilson, MD, MPH, of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester Medical Center's Golisano Children's Hospital found children living in apartments had 45 percent higher exposure to passive smoking.

For the study, the researchers analysed data on cotinine, an alkaloid found in tobacco and also a metabolite of nicotine in more than 5,000 children ages 6 to 18 in a national database.

Cotinine levels were found highest in children who were under age 12, black and of a family with its income below the federal poverty level.

Children are believed to be more vulnerable to passive smoking and exposed children were at higher risk for various illnesses including respiratory infections, asthma and sudden infant death syndrome among others.

But not all children suffer the same.

Another study led by Schultz E.N. and colleagues from the University of Western Australia in Perth, Australia suggests genetics plays a role in the vulnerability of a child to certain tobacco smoke-induced health conditions.

The researchers reported in the Nov 2010 issue of the Journal of Asthma that the glutathionine S-transferase (GSTs) enzymes play a critical role in the detoxification of tobacco smoke compounds, which boost risk of asthma among other things.

Genetic variation in the GST genes influences a child's ability to detoxify the smoke pollutants, according to the study.

Cigarette smoke contain more than 7,000 chemicals and hundreds of them are toxic and more than 70 are cancer-causing agents, according to a report released recently by the Surgeon General.

Read More

http://www.foodconsumer.org/newsite/Non-food/Lifestyle/tobacco_smoking_1312100810.html