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| Issue 118 | 24 June 2009 |
Having trouble viewing this newsletter? Try the online version. FROM THE DIRECTOR'S DESK
Watch out in the next issue for a major update on the 'Vision'. After more than 12 months work a (near) final version of the 'Vision' document, incorporating all the feedback we have had, along with supporting documents has been completed. This articulates the tobacco control sector's agenda to achieve a Tobacco free/Tupeka kore Aotearoa/New Zealand by 2020. One thing that became very clear during the process was that we need a paradigm shift in thinking if we are serious about making a dent in smoking prevalence, which is currently declining at a glacial pace. The 'Vision' document lays out the challenges. We are ever hopeful this 'Vision' will inform the work of the decision makers as they tackle the problems caused by the health effects of smoking. More on this in a fortnight along with the appropriate acknowledgments to the many people who have invested so much time and effort into getting to this point. This week Ben Youdan is our guest editorial writer. Ben is the Director of ASH and has strong links internationally, particularly in the area of cessation. Have a great fortnight. Mark Peck Director IN THIS ISSUE:
Guest editorial – Thoughts on the US FDA BillBen Youdan, Director,
Raising the age of purchase to 18 Banning flavoured ingredients in tobacco We love a conspiracy theory here at ASH, so it's also interesting to note that Philip Morris has donated in excess of a million dollars to the Congressional Black Caucus since 2002. Half the Caucus supported the Bill. Banning 'light' and 'mild' style descriptors Increased pack warnings Restrictions on advertising Advertising will be restricted in publications with a substantial youth audience. They will be permitted, but will have to be black and white text only. (Some advertising copywriters will really be earning their money now!) Tobacco point-of-sale advertising and vending machines will only be permitted in 'adult only' stores. Tobacco product standards This includes levels for nicotine. It can't be totally removed, but cigarettes could in theory be made far less addictive. However, to do this the FDA must prove that it is "appropriate for the protection of public health", and would not increase the use of contraband products. Whether the FDA makes cigarettes less addictive remains to be seen. Many argue it would drive people to the black market. Perhaps it would be more realistic to try reducing the carcinogens in smoke, and ultimately making cigarettes taste so bad they put people off. The other part of product standards is that the FDA will now approve any new products before they hit the market. New products must not be significantly different to existing products marketed before February 2007 – unless they prove to significantly reduce health harms. This has pros and cons. On one hand it limits new products that can come onto the market. But it also makes it harder to introduce new, less harmful products. The risk and benefits will also be weighed up against NRT. I have some reservations that this reinforces a complete abstinence from nicotine model, whereas sensible addiction management has greater benefits. It can be argued the Bill keeps it easy to sell existing tobacco products, especially the most harmful that have been about since before 2007, and effectively gives them a seal of approval by the FDA. The Bill was supported by Philip Morris! Many feel it will act to protect their business interests. In summary (well done if you've made it this far), the Bill does have many good aspects. Of concern is that the US has still not ratified the FCTC that goes further on many issues than this Bill. Could this act as a further barrier to this ratification? While this is huge progress for the US, many worrying gaps, exemptions and potential pitfalls remain. It is long term planning, and only time will tell how well it works. I don't personally support this style of approach for New Zealand. If we do regulate nicotine it must be in favour of the least harmful, and penalise the most harmful. I fear the FDA Bill risks doing quite the opposite. If you want some good commentary on the Bill I suggest Jonathan Fould's blog at: http://www.healthline.com/blogs/smoking_cessation/2009/06/fda-regulation-of-tobacco-what-does-it.html. Latest Year 10 ASH Snapshot Survey resultsThe ASH Year Ten Snapshot Survey, launched 10 June by Associate Health Minister Tariana Turia, shows a record 61 percent of students report never using tobacco products, up from 57 percent last year. Overall 6.9 percent of Year Ten students report being daily smokers compared with 9.8 percent in 2004, when the changes to the Smoke-free Environments Act were introduced. ASH Director Ben Youdan says, "The decline in youth smoking has been a real success story, but we need to make sure these students stay smokefree for life. "The impact of existing smokefree policies is beginning to slow. Youth daily smoking rates decreased by 15 percent between 2006 and 2008. This isn't as great as the reduction from 2003 to 2005 when there was a 25 percent drop in the number of daily smokers. "The story of the ASH Year Ten Snapshot Survey is one of long-term decline in youth smoking rates. However, we can not afford to become complacent. The pressure needs to be kept on and more needs to be done to ensure the successes flow through to the adult smoking rates." Twelve percent of students identified as regular smokers (those who smoke daily, weekly or monthly) compared with 17.6 percent in 2004. The daily smoking rate among Māori girls is down to 21.6 percent from just over 29 percent in 2004. Just over 30 000 or nearly half of the country's Year 10 students completed the anonymous self-administered questionnaires. ASH media release, 10 June 2009 The 2008 Year 10 ASH Snapshot Survey results are available at the ASH website: www.ash.org.nz. New Face the Facts messages
Watch out for the next Face the Facts messages, being released soon. They are: 'Smoking robs your loved ones of 15 years of your life' and 'Rollies are not a safer smoke'. No smoke stance wins award
She said receiving an award from the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation that recognises retailers who have stopped selling tobacco was a nice touch. But her stand had already inspired several staff members to give up smoking, which she saw as very satisfying. "The stance we've taken has made a few people realise that selling cigarettes is not an automatic necessity for retailers, and I think a few smokers have realised it's not an automatic necessity for them either." The economic impact of not selling cigarettes was described as "minimal". The business would only get about seven cents per packet of cigarettes sold. "After that all the overhead costs had to be taken out, so it's not something we're hurting too much over," Mrs Clarke said. "The tobacco companies had us brainwashed into thinking selling tobacco was a drawcard that would help bring more customers in, but we've discovered this hasn't really been the case. "The pressure that we were under from the tobacco companies to comply with their marketing requirements is also something we're not sad to leave behind at all, so I'd say we're all happy with the decision." The final decision to stop selling tobacco came with the advent of the graphic illustrations that showed how smoking affected body organs. "That just put me off completely and I decided I didn't even want the stuff in my shop. "A lot of young Māori women smoke, and as an older Māori woman I feel I should be setting an example. If that means choosing not to sell cigarettes or tobacco, then it's a start," she said. Taieri Herald 9 June 2009 Oceania Tobacco Control Conference 2009 – Programme Update
Oceania Tobacco Control 2009 is shaping up as one our best ever tobacco control conferences, featuring innovative programmes and and in-depth discussion of key issues across the region. This year's programme will have a major focus on tobacco and inequality. Preliminary highlights include:
Abstract submissions close Thursday 25 June (extended from 19 June). Early bird registrations close Friday 24 July. Find out more at www.oceania2009.org. SMOKEFREE SHORTS
New ZealandRobert Beaglehole: Flu response lessons can help stub out smoking
The Government must now act in a similar fashion to prevent the tobacco pandemic which is also a global health crisis according to the World Health Organization. Everything has been done to prevent, contain and now manage the effects of the rapidly spreading influenza outbreak – right down to instructions to wash hands. The Government's leadership on this public health issue has not been questioned; nor has it been accused of "nannying". New Zealand Herald, 22 June 2008 Tobacco out of sight Seven of the eleven businesses throughout Northland that either refuse to sell tobacco or hide the product from sight are in the Kaipara district. Ruawai Dairy and the Paparoa Store have recently joined five other Kaipara businesses in the health industry's "out of sight, out of mind" campaign. Ruawai Dairy and the Really Good Shop in Te Kopuru refuse to sell any tobacco products, while Paparoa Store's decision to place tobacco under the counter follows the stand taken by Jaques' 4 Square in Kaiwaka and BJ's Dairy in Dargaville. Northern Advocate, 4 June 2008 New funding for anti-smoking drug PHARMAC will begin marketing the smoking cessation drug bupropion (Zyban) from 1 July 2009. Funding bupropion will provide another subsidised option for people seeking to give up smoking. The Government currently funds nicotine replacement therapy for smoking cessation through the Quitline programme. PHARMAC's Medical Director Dr Peter Moodie says he expects the availability of a further funded product, and its availability by prescription from doctors, to increase the number of people using subsidised anti-smoking therapies. Currently about 50,000 people use nicotine replacement therapy annually. Scoop, 1 June 2008 InternationalWhy a tobacco giant backs a tough new anti-smoking bill
The result, say the researchers, is that consumers who buy the same brand of product are not made aware of how that product has been altered and what effect those alterations might have on their levels of addiction or harm. Time, 12 June 2008 Can smoking ever be made safe? Tobacco companies have begun "clinical trials" to assess whether a range of prototype "safer cigarettes" really do slash levels of toxic chemicals entering the body. At the moment there is no way of regulating any health claims firms might make for these cigarettes or restricting whether they bring such products onto the market at all. But this week the US Government will decide whether to hand the job over to the Food and Drug Administration. New Scientist, 10 June 2009 Why smoking increases the risk of heart disease and strokes
The study found that nicotine in cigarettes promotes insulin resistance, a pre-diabetic condition that raises blood sugar levels higher than normal. People with pre-diabetes are at greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Science Daily, 12 June 2008 Aussies spend $7.4b on smoking Australian smokers burn a collective $7.4 billion hole in their pockets every year to sustain their habit. The nation's average smoker lights up 14 cigarettes a day, research shows, and this cost over the year totals more than $2,500. The poll by Galaxy Research also shows smokers lose a significant amount of productive time – as nipping out for cigarette adds up to 17 days over the year. News Mail, 19 June 2008 Australia urged to approve plain-packaged cigarettes
A recommendation to begin selling cigarettes without advertising logos is expected to be handed to the Federal Government by the preventative health taskforce. Moves towards implementing plain packaging in Canada were unsuccessful. But the Executive Director of Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, Cynthia Callard, says tobacco companies no longer have the same influence they had 10 years ago. ABC News, 11 June 2009 Nicotine gum before quitting smoking not helpful Starting nicotine gum, while reducing the number of cigarettes smoked by half at four weeks before a target date for quitting smoking is no more effective than beginning nicotine replacement on the quit date without tapering off beforehand, according to a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Reuters, 9 June 2008 Big tobacco: a history of its decline "My own view is that in many ways, the tobacco industry invented the kind of special-interest lobbying that has become so characteristic of the late 20th- and earlier 21st-century American politics," says Allan Brandt, Dean of Harvard's Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. "Today, obviously, that lobby is much less powerful and successful than it was a generation ago," said Brandt, author of The Cigarette Century: The Rise, Fall, and Deadly Persistence of the Product That Defined America. CNN, 19 June 2008 Star reveals terrible legacy of life-long smoking addiction
But for actress Liz Dawn, who played Vera for an astonishing 34 years, it was a significant personal moment – not only because it was the end of the role, but also because she'd been building up to it since being diagnosed six years earlier with the lung disease, emphysema. The condition leaves sufferers struggling for breath. "My last years in The Street were increasingly stressful," Liz says, talking about living with emphysema for the first time. Mail Online, 16 June 2008 MILESTONESLook who's had a birthday recently: Michelle Lee, Janine Paynter and Courtney Mackie! QUOTABLE QUOTES"Those with long memories will recall Sir Robert Muldoon imposing a sales tax not on loose leaf tobacco but on the cigarette papers used in roll-your-owns. Different reasons then, though. It was the wily old mastodon's roundabout way of taxing marijuana users." R Hosking in Letters, "What do we say to our young fellas when we're supporting the companies that kill us? We cannot come out of here talking health and walking bad health." At the Tane Ora Māori Men's Health Hui on 17 June, MP Hone Harawira emphasised the need for Māori men to lead by example so younger generations would follow good role models, particularly when it came to smoking. |
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You may have noticed the US senate has voted to give the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the powers to regulate tobacco products. Many of the new FDA powers appear to be catching up with New Zealand, and even the provisions of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). Here's my take on key provisions of the FDA Bill and some broader concerns I have.
A year after ditching tobacco sales from
the Black Swan Tearooms in Waihola, Otago, owner Myra Clarke
has received recognition for her stand.
Where
possible, links are provided below the stories. Please click these to read
the story in full.
The key lesson from the response to the present influenza pandemic is that Government-led public health interventions are necessary, widely accepted and can work to protect the health of New Zealanders.
As President Obama prepares to sign a bill giving the Food and Drug Administration oversight of the tobacco industry, a new study from Harvard School of Public Health researchers shows that tobacco manufacturers have continually changed the ingredients and the design of their cigarettes over time, even if those changes have exceeded acceptable product variance guidelines.
Researchers at Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles and Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona have discovered a reason why smoking increases the risk of heart disease and strokes.
A Canadian expert says the time is right for the Australian Government to pursue the introduction of plain packaging for cigarettes.
When Vera Duckworth, one of
Coronation Street's most loved characters, passed away 18 months ago, there was barely a dry eye among the soap's 12.5 million viewers.