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| Issue 145 | 26 May 2010 |
Having trouble viewing this newsletter? Try the online version. From the Director
Last week I volunteered to help organise the Post-Budget Breakfast hosted by the Public Health Association and the Child Poverty Action Group (that's me pictured at the Breakfast). This was a chance to come to terms with what the Budget, announced last week, had to offer the children of New Zealand and the health sector at large. Breakfast speakers were bleak in their appraisals, but our work in tobacco control remains a positive message of huge health benefits for less money. A pack-a-day smoker saves up to $80 a week if they quit! Even the first two weeks' taste of that savings could, in this fiscal climate, make all the difference for those trying to beat their addictions. With World Smokefree Day fast approaching (31 May), let's all encourage this one positive to come out of the Budget. That quitting will save money is a message we can send directly to every individual smoker. Last week was also my chance to sit before the Māori Affairs Select Committee inquiry. Professor Robert Beaglehole and I gave each member of the Select Committee their own copy of Achieving the Vision, and urged them to deliver the Tupeka Kore Aotearoa 2020/Tobacco Free New Zealand 2020 Vision to government, recommending its translation into policy for our nation. Over this week and next, I will be sending more copies to all New Zealand's key stakeholders and decision-makers. By reaching out across all sectors and disseminating this strategy document, I believe tobacco control's positive message can be a ray of hope for New Zealand's future generations. If you know of a key decision-maker or stakeholder in your region who should receive a copy of our document, please be in touch and give me their contact information. Take care, Prudence Stone, Director, IN THIS ISSUE:
Submitters' impressions about the inquiryWe asked members who presented orally to the Māori Affairs Select Committee inquiry to tell us their impressions in just a few sentences each. Change for our ChildrenStephanie Cowan and David Smith
2. Is there anything you forgot to say? 3. What was your favourite part of the experience? 4. What do you think the Select Committee still needs to hear? 5. Are there still gaps for future presenters to fill? Can you make suggestions for the last hearing's presenters? SmokechangeGina Blair, Carol Reardon, Amy Manawatu and Stephanie Cowan
1. Tell us how you really think you did? 2. Is there anything you forgot to say? 3. What was your favourite part of the experience? 4. What do you think the Select Committee still needs to hear? 5. Are there still gaps for future presenters to fill? Can you make suggestions for the last hearing's presenters? End Smoking NZ
1. Tell us how you really think you did? 2. Is there anything you forgot to say? 3. What was your favourite part of the experience? 4. What do you think the Select Committee still needs to hear? 5. Are there still gaps for future presenters to fill? Can you make suggestions for the last hearing's presenters? University of Otago
1. Tell us how you really think you did? 2. Is there anything you forgot to say? 3. What was your favourite part of the experience? 4. What do you think the Select Committee still needs to hear? 5. Are there still gaps for future presenters to fill? Can you make suggestions for the last hearing's presenters? Family watched granddad dying of cancer
Mei Riwai-Couch, 7, and her brother Brigham, 9, carried a life-sized coffin made of 500 cigarette packets into the inquiry held in Christchurch. Brigham and Mei helped care for their grandfather until he died of lung cancer, aged 69, in January 2009. He was the last of 16 brothers and sisters to die. "I used to watch my grandfather smoke at breakfast," Brigham said in his submission. "His cigarette would sit on his lip; even when he talked, it wouldn't fall out. He might have taken it out to eat or to drink his coffee, but I don't really know. It was just always there." He remembered visiting his grandfather in hospital and his skin looking pale and green. "The doctors said that grandpa had cancer in his lungs. His lungs were filling up with water. Even when they took the water out a few times, it kept coming back. He would still give me cuddles and say `how are you boy?' but his eyes would cry a lot." The siblings said they wanted politicians to do something so more children would not have to lose people they loved. "If smoking is so bad for you, I don't know why they are allowed to sell it in shops," Brigham said. The children's mother, Melanie Riwai-Couch, said it could be confusing for children who were told smoking was bad by parents, teachers and in church, but saw people they loved and respected with cigarettes. The Press, 15 May 2010 Grilling Mr Tobaccoby Vicki Wilkinson-Baker
It starts off well. The members of the Select Committee inquiry into the tobacco industry and the consequences of tobacco use for Māori are listening attentively. Tony Mears explains how Imperial Tobacco came to New Zealand in 1999 and by doing so saved over 100 Kiwi jobs. It employs New Zealanders and uses locally grown product. All good. And he's honest about the health dangers associated with smoking. He admits there's no such thing as a "safe cigarette". But his over-riding message is: Adults have the right to choose whether or not they smoke. And if the government bans cigarettes or makes them too expensive, it will drive the industry underground and criminals will have no hesitation selling them to the young and the impressionable. But when Mr Mears had to answer a few questions, things got a little more awkward. How does he reconcile the 130 jobs his company saved with the 5000 deaths caused by tobacco each year? This was his reply: "The health risks associated with tobacco have been known and understood for years. If adults choose to smoke, they take on those risks." It was odd he didn't expand on all the other jobs the tobacco industry is responsible for. Five thousand deaths a year keep funeral directors busy. Coffin makers. Florists. Doctors and nurses sitting around with nothing to do all day can be thankful for the extra work that keeps them employed. We've got people working in palliative care. It's thanks to the tobacco industry that we have an anti-smoking lobby. Goodness knows how many people at the Ministry of Health only have jobs because of all the endless campaigns outlining the dangers of smoking. And so it goes on. Another question. "You talked about criminals and gangs taking over an illicit trade – are you seriously suggesting the gangs could kill 5000 people a year like you fellas are doing? Do you think the gangs are that good?" Go, Hone Harawira. Imperial Tobacco before the Select Committee ONE News, 18 May 2010 (read more), A curse on the industryBankers have come in for a few curses after bringing the world economy to the brink of collapse, but it is unlikely any have carried the raw, visceral content of a curse submitted by New Amsterdam Reedy to the Select Committee inquiry into the tobacco industry and the consequences of tobacco use for Māori. It reads: Pokokohua ma! Kai a te poaka! Whakarongo mai ki enei kupu whaiwhaia! Sunday Star-Times, 9 May 2010 Quitline urges MPs: "Keep your foot on the throttle!"
Paula Snowden, Chief Executive of The Quit Group, headed a team presenting to the Māori Affairs Select Committee which is investigating the tobacco industry. In light of new figures from the Smokefree Coalition showing that 64 percent of New Zealanders completely support an end to tobacco sales by 2020, Paula said, "We know that smokers want to quit. They've been coming to us in record numbers since the prices went up. "But we need to provide the incentives so smokers keep choosing to beat the addiction – such as tax increases or banning tobacco displays in dairies – and we then need to support them to quit and stay quit." In the week following the tax increase on 28 April The Quit Group registered 3040 new smokers through its services, compared to an average weekly figure of 1062 before the increase. Of these, 625 were Māori. "There's been an attitude shift in this country over the last few years. People are no longer willing to tolerate a product that kills Kiwis by the thousands," Ms Snowden said. "New Zealanders are not fooled by arguments against controls when they know those controls are designed to save lives, promote health and keep whānau together. The work of this Select Committee is perfectly timed to put an end to this – to get tobacco out of sight and out of mind, and to offer support to smokers who want to rid themselves of this horrendous addiction." Quit Group media release, 20 May 2010 Four policies to end the sale of cigarettes and smoking tobacco in New Zealand by 2020Murray Laugesen, Marewa Glover, Trish Fraser, Ross McCormick, John Scott The four policies End Smoking recommends are:
These options involve a balancing of supply against demand, so that both are reduced together, minimising the risk of a black market. Matching decreasing supply on the one hand, with reduced demand can be achieved by a mix of increased price, decreased nicotine, and alternatives that supply inhaled nicotine. New Zealand Medical Journal 14 May 2010 Teachers' Say About Smokefree
Teachers' Say About Smokefree is a survey that was conducted by researchers at the School of Population Health, University of Auckland, between August and October, 2008. They randomly selected 2000 teachers from the electoral roll and invited them to take part. In total 1412 completed surveys were received. This study was funded by the Ministry of Health. The research was carried out by Dr Marewa Glover, Donna Watson, Dr Judith McCool, and Dr Chris Bullen from the School of Population Health, University of Auckland, and Dr Brian Adams from the National Heart Foundation. The study aimed to find out what teachers think about smokefree issues, such as the law that made all schools/kura/and early childhood centres smokefree from 2004. Find out more and order a copy of the report. Tagata Pasifika tobacco tax story
http://tvnz.co.nz/tagata-pasifika/s2010-e7-video-3530104 The sneakiest design everIf you keep up with the European racing circuit, and or Formula One (F1), you are probably aware the European Union is getting ready to pass a law banning cigarette advertising on F1 cars. Now let's say you are I don't know, hmmmmm, Marlboro, and you sponsor one of the largest and best F1 racing teams in the world. And your brand is intertwined not only with that racing team, but in many ways to F1 racing itself, what are you going to do? You are going to get very, very clever, and that is just what Marlboro did. According to the EU, the law reads something like this. "The Tobacco Advertising Directive: Passed by the European Parliament and Council in 2003, the Directive bans tobacco advertising in the print media, on radio and over the internet. It also prohibits tobacco sponsorship of cross-border cultural and sporting events."
So Marlboro has spent a ton of money to sponsor Ferrari's Formula One team without being able to brand the cars. Basically, the Ferraris appear to have no major sponsorship when raced in the EU. And this is where Marlboro got really clever. In January of this year, Ferrari unveiled the new Marlboro Scuderia F1. (it is important to note that Ferrari is the only F1 team that has a tobacco brand in its formula one title). Upon first look the car is void of any Marlboro branding, and appears to be in full compliance with the rules. It has gone fairly unnoticed over the last five months, but now five races into the F1 season, Ferrari is under scrutiny over the Marlboro branding issue. In typical Ferrari fashion, the F1 car sports a predominately red paint job with a few smaller associate sponsor brands present. But one of the most dominating elements of the cars' paint job is a massive red, black and white bar code that runs across the air intake behind the driver. It also shows up on drivers uniforms and in other sponsor items like patches, print and decals. On first glance it looks like a simple racing detail. A new form of stripe, or just a bold graphic touch. But when the subject is moving at 200 miles per hour, it takes on a familiar look. A look that is surprisingly similar to the iconic Marlboro logo. Very clever indeed. Read more at Wade Johnston's This Modern House blog, 12 May 2010. Recent researchClick the links below each piece for more information. What works in indigenous tobacco control?This study explored the perceptions of remote indigenous community members and health staff in Australia's Northern Territory regarding the acceptability and effectiveness of different tobacco control health promotion interventions. www.healthpromotion.org.au/journal/table-of-contents/209-abstract-2010-2145-50 The "We Card" programme: tobacco industry "youth smoking prevention" as industry self-preservationThe "We Card" programme is the most ubiquitous tobacco industry "youth smoking prevention" programme in the United States and its retailer materials have been copied in other countries. The programme's effectiveness has been questioned, but no previous studies have examined its development, goals, and uses from the tobacco industry's perspective. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20466965 The relation between smoking-specific parenting and smoking trajectories of adolescentsThis study tested to what extent smoking-specific parenting and changes in parenting are related to adolescents' smoking trajectories. Data were used from a four-wave prospective study including 428 adolescents. www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a921789770~frm=abslink Acne and smokingPost-adolescent acne is an inflammatory disorder, the cause of which is unknown. The objective of this study was to verify the frequency of clinically non-inflammatory (atypical) post-adolescent acne among women and a possible correlation with cigarette smoking. www.landesbioscience.com/journals/dermatoendocrinology/article/9638/ Tobacco point-of-sale displays in England: a snapshot survey of current practicesThis study explores the nature of point-of-sale displays, the extent to which they are tobacco industry funded, and the relation between the tobacco companies and retailers. http://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/early/2010/05/13/tc.2009.034447.short Yoga as a complementary treatment for smoking cessationTobacco smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death among American women. Exercise has shown promise as an aid to smoking cessation because it reduces weight gain and weight concerns and reduces nicotine withdrawal symptoms. www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6882/10/14 Acute physiologic effects of second-hand smoke exposure in childrenThis study investigated the hypothesis that exhaled carbon monoxide (eCO), heart rate (HR), and blood pressure (BP) would increase acutely in exposed but not in unexposed children. http://ntr.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/ntq069 Workplace tobacco cessation program in India: A success storyThe aim of this study was to assess the tobacco quit rates among employees, through self report history, and validate it with rapid urine cotinine test; compare post-intervention KAP regarding tobacco consumption with the pre-intervention responses; assess the tobacco consumption pattern among contract employees and provide assistance to encourage quitting. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2862448/?tool=pubmed Smoking Not Our Future Facebook page
Having a Facebook page, means relinquishing control, as young people need to have ownership of the site, which can be challenging at times. Whilst HSC deletes any offensive/abusive messages, young people are pretty much free to say whatever they want. Smoking Not Our Future posts points for discussion but does not respond to individual comments, leaving it up to the community to monitor and make comments. Feel free to join the page, but as experts in tobacco control it is best to refrain from commenting, as this could end up changing the dynamic of the page, and the ownership of it by young people. Daring to dream – lessons for the tobacco endgameDepartment of Public Health – Lunchtime Seminar Friday 28 May 2010 "Daring to dream – lessons for the tobacco endgame" Presenter: Richard Edwards The 'Daring to dream' research project explored reactions to a range of 'endgame' solutions for ending tobacco smoking in New Zealand. This seminar presents some results and then describes the proposal for a practical means to achieving a Tupeka Kore Aotearoa through a 'sinking lid' approach to tobacco supply. Developed by a group of researchers from the Department of Public Health, this proposal was recently presented to the Māori Affairs Select Committee inquiry into the tobacco industry and the consequences of tobacco use for Māori. Richard Edwards is a Professor of Public Health at the Department of Public Health, University of Otago, Wellington. His main research interests are in tobacco control and evaluation. He trained in medicine and public health in the UK and came to Wellington in 2005. Nordmeyer Lecture Theatre Smokefree Futures: Tobacco Control Conference 2010Have you been involved in a tobacco control project that made a real and positive impact? If so we would love to hear from you at the Smokefree Futures: Tobacco Control Conference, 11-12 October 2010 in Cardiff, Wales. We want to hear from tobacco control practitioners about innovative and groundbreaking projects and ideas that fall within the theme of the conference i.e. Smokefree Futures. The conference will provide practitioners with the opportunity to submit their projects as either oral or poster presentations. Any relevant tobacco control subject relating to the conference theme will be considered. The conference organisers will make the final decision regarding acceptance and the form of presentation. The closing date for submission of abstracts is the 11th June. Abstract submission forms can be downloaded at www.smoking-conference-wales.org.uk/call-for-papers.php. And while you are visiting the conference website please do have a look at the exciting line up of plenary and workshop speakers in the conference programme. You can register on line at www.smoking-conference-wales.org.uk/registration.php. SMOKEFREE SHORTS
New ZealandResearchers hope spray's the way to stub out smoking Otago University's School of Medicine has embarked on a $1.6 million research project to check the viability of using an oral spray to curb nicotine cravings. Unlike nicotine gum and patches, which can take as long as 30 minutes to deliver a "peak" amount of nicotine to the blood, the spray hit in about half that time, Research Fellow Brent Caldwell said. Dominion Post, 17 May 2010 Tobacco giant backs retail protest A lobby group of small retailers protesting the Government's tobacco price hike is receiving public relations support from Imperial Tobacco, the tobacco giant told a Select Committee last week. The Association of Community Retailers (ACR), set up late last month, had earlier rejected suggestions it was backed by tobacco cash and said it was entirely funded from its members. Stuff, 23 May 2010 Māori Select Committee told of need to phase-out tobacco sales This plan would reduce smoking prevalence to virtually nil, and end the 5000 deaths a year from smoking. The recommendations are made in a detailed submission to the Māori Affairs Select Committee now inquiring into the tobacco industry and the consequences of tobacco use for Māori. Professor Tony Blakely told the Select Committee that an end to commercial tobacco sales by 2020 would result in about five extra years of life for Māori by 2040. University of Otago media release, 19 May 2010 InternationalVirus links women smokers to cancer risk
They found nicotine works with a certain molecule to increase the cancer-causing effect of the sexually-transmitted infection Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). HPV causes around 70 percent of cervical cancers, which kill 1000 UK women each year. And though up to 80 percent of women will be infected with HPV at some point in their lives, it usually needs no treatment and is harmless. The Mirror (UK), 12 May 2010 NSW smoking rates at record low: survey The latest New South Wales Health Survey shows the percentage of people aged 16 and over who smoke "daily or occasionally" dropped to 17 percent in 2009 – down from 24 percent when the survey began 12 years ago. Since the previous survey in 2008, the amount of people who smoke "daily or occasionally" has fallen by one percentage point. Sydney Morning Herald, 11 May 2010 Governor signs act to protect youth from new tobacco products Minnesota's leading health groups have applauded Governor Tim Pawlenty for taking another step to protect youth from harmful tobacco products. The Governor has signed into law the Tobacco Modernization and Compliance Act of 2010, which updates Minnesota laws to address new generations of tobacco products. Effective 1 August 2010, these changes apply existing state tobacco taxes and regulations to new smokeless tobacco products, which attract young customers because they are low-cost, come in candy flavours and sometimes resemble mints and breath strips. PR Newswire, 11 May 2010 Seven out of 10 Spaniards in favour of smoking ban
These are the main conclusions of a report published by the Spanish Society for Family and Community Medicine which interviewed nearly 3000 smokers, non-smokers and ex-smokers, in preparation for National No Smoking Week which runs from 24-31 May. ThinkSpain, 17 May 2010 Hospital admissions drop after anti-smoking legislation Since the implementation of anti-smoking legislation, hospital admissions for cardiovascular and respiratory conditions have decreased 39 percent and 33 percent respectively, found a research article in Canadian Medical Association Journal. Science Daily, 19 April 2010 Smokers letting mortgage go up in smoke Quitting cigarettes can do more than lengthen your life. It can shorten the term of your mortgage. Research from financial comparison website RateCity shows a pack-a-day smoker spends $4000 a year, or $300 a month, on cigarettes. Dropping that money onto the monthly repayments of a 25-year, $300,000 mortgage, could reduce the term of the loan to 19 years and knock $100,000 off interest repayments. Yahoo, 20 May 2010 Smokers face tighter restrictions
The UAE, along with other GCC States is putting forward tough legislation to help control smoking, including hiking the cost of a pack of cigarettes to double the price. Smoking will be banned in and outside educational institutions, public transport, sports venues and houses of worship. Gulf News, 13 May 2010 Most Aussies support $2 price rise per cigarette pack Australians overwhelmingly back the federal government's increase in cigarette excise – except those who smoke. An Age/Nielsen poll has found that 71 percent overall support the increase – the rate is 81 percent among non-smokers – but 73 percent of smokers are opposed, most of them strongly. The Age, 11 May 2010 Mothers offered £650 to stub out tobacco Pregnant smokers will get food vouchers worth up to £650 if they agree to give up cigarettes, under a scheme proposed by the Scottish government. Women who quit will receive grocery vouchers worth £12.50-a-week during their pregnancy and for three months after their child is born. Times Online, 9 May 2010 China insists it will make good on smoking ban pledge
The Health Ministry said it intended to implement a plan to prohibit smoking from next year in all indoor public places and offices, as well as on trains and buses, the Global Times reported. Senior Ministry Official Yang Qing said the goal had been set in accordance with the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which came into force in early 2005. China ratified it that same year. Yahoo, 12 May 2010 China: A new effective strategy for treating tobacco addiction The tobacco addiction epidemic is a major public health problem worldwide. Professor Zhao Baolu and his group from the Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences set out to tackle this problem. After 20 years of innovative research, they have developed a novel tea filter to treat cigarette addiction and have discovered the molecular mechanism behind the smoking cessation effect. Eurekalert, 11 May 2010 Reynolds told to pay $29.1 million to smoker's widow RJ Reynolds Tobacco Co must pay US$29.1 million to Connie Buonomo, the widow of a Florida man who started smoking at age 13 and died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in 2008, a jury in Fort Lauderdale said. The unanimous verdict today by six state jurors includes $4.1 million in compensatory damages and $25 million in punitive damages. Bloomberg Businessweek, 20 May 2010 Smoking kills? Yaay, that's so cool, say teens
Surveys have long shown that children are more likely to smoke if one or both parents do, and that they are influenced strongly by the habits of siblings and peers. But beyond these obvious connections, are there other factors involved in encouraging children to smoke? The Hospital Club in Covent Garden is hosting an event that will examine how smoking has maintained its allure – an allure highlighted in research from Nottingham University that has revealed the prevalence of smoking images in British-made films. Times Online, 10 May 2010 Finland tells Philip Morris to burn it Tobacco company Philip Morris has been forced to destroy 20 million cigarettes following a new law requiring that all cigarettes sold in Finland be self-extinguishing, reports the daily Turun Sanomat. The cigarettes were burned in Ekokem's kilns in Riihimaki, some 70 kilometres north of Helsinki. YLE, 13 May 2010 QUOTABLE QUOTES"The only purpose of the cigarette is to perpetuate nicotine addition. The only purpose of that is to make some unscrupulous bastards wealthy." Comment on "Imperial Tobacco address Māori Affairs Select Committee", Voxy, 14 May 2010 "You talked about criminals and gangs taking over an illicit trade – are you seriously suggesting the gangs could kill 5000 people a year like you fellas are doing? Do you think the gangs are that good?" Māori Party MP Hone Harawira to Imperial Tobacco
Representative Tony Mears at the recent Māori Affairs Select Committee hearings",
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Happy
Youth Week everyone: I hope you're all taking part and enjoying the
1.
Tell us how you really think you did?
Murray Laugesen
Richard Edwards
Watching their grandfather die of lung cancer spurred two Christchurch children to share their story at the Māori Affairs Select Committee inquiry into the tobacco industry and the consequences of tobacco use for Māori.
It turned out to be the best show in town. The man from Imperial Tobacco looked sharp in a dark suit, crisp white shirt, navy and white tie. The tobacco company man and his assistant had some serious work to do. It's not easy defending a product that kills half its long-term users.
Experts from the smoking cessation Quitline, which has seen call numbers rocket after the recent tobacco tax increase,
are asking politicians to keep up the pressure on the tobacco industry.
The 6 May 2010 episode of Tagata Pasifika featured Stephanie Erick (Tala Pasifika), Shelly Rao (The Quit Group), and Sefita Hao'uli (Auckland Community Advocate) talking about the recent tax increases and smoking amongst Pacific peoples. You can watch the episode at the link below. There's a button you can click to go to Chapter Two which has the tobacco tax story.
HSC has launched Smoking Not Our Future on
Where
possible, links to full articles are provided below each story.
A fast-acting spray could replace gum and patches in the battle to stop New Zealanders smoking.
Public
Health Researchers from the University of Otago, Wellington have called for a clear
government plan to totally phase-out commercial tobacco sales in New Zealand by 2020.
Scientists believe they have discovered why women smokers are twice as likely to develop cervical cancer than non-smokers.
Seven
out of 10 Spaniards favour a complete ban on tobacco in public places and 33 percent say they would frequent restaurants and bars more often if smoking was banned in them.
The anti-tobacco federal law which will strictly prohibit smoking in certain public places in Dubai and make it more expensive, should be in place by September a senior official has said.
China, the world's biggest consumer of tobacco, has insisted it will honour a pledge to ban smoking in public places by 2011 in accordance with an international treaty, state media said.
How have things gone so wrong? Why, after such an almighty effort to persuade them otherwise, do young people still perceive smoking as 'cool'?