Tobacco continues to be a hot button issue in the news today. Current articles focus on everything from secondhand smoke to tobacco anti-advertisements to teen tobacco use. On this page I will summarize five different current news articles. Keep in mind, information in the news can be biased. Enjoy!
E-Cigarettes: "Smoking out the facts in the E-cigarette Debate"
An article in UConn Today featured an article with an interview of Mark Litt, who is doing research on the effect of e-cigs(abbreviation of electronic cigarettes). It covers how they work, what the appeal is, the safety of e-cigs, if they help people stop smoking tobacco, and the concerns of e-cigs being a gateway to tobacco use. E-Cigs are battery powered and heat up a glycerin based liquid solution which produces an aerosol mist. This solution has no set ingredients which is why there is concern about the safety elements of e-cigs. They can also have flavors, for example menthol, tobacco, vanilla, coconut, chocolate, or mango. The appearance of flavor in e-cigs is often criticized for being an incentive for young people to buy them. There is much speculation surround e-cigs. Everything from the safety to the actual effectiveness of helping people to quit smoking. Mark Litt believes they will soon be prohibbited for anyone under the age of 18. If you're interested in reading the complete article you can find the link here. The issue of e-cigs is also further debated on my debates page! (31)
Teen tobacco use: "New Stats on drug, alcohol and tobacco use by teens"
This was a short article in CBS news which basically referenced a study done by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. According to this study, a survey of 70,000 people 12 years and older, substance abuse and dependence dropped from 8.9% to 5.2%. It also showed tobacco use in 12-17 year olds dropped from 15% in 2002 to 8% in 2013. If you're interested in reading the complete article the link can be found here. (36)
Secondhand smoke: "Secondhand Smoke may affect hearing"
An article in the New York Times examines a study done by researchers who publish in the The Archives of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery shows that there might be a connection between hearing loss and secondhand smoke. The research focused on 2,000 teens, after the smokers were taken out of the data there were 799 nonsmokers who had cotinine levels which seemed they were exposed to secondhand smoke and 754 who did not have exposure to secondhand smoke. Higher cotinine levels are associated with hearing loss in people. Over 17% who had high levels of cotinine levels also had hearing loss at low frequencies. If you would like to read the complete article please click on the link here. (1)
Tobacco use on College Campuses: "smoking bans pick up momentum on college campuses, despite protests"
This article in the Washington Post from 2012 addresses the movement towards banning smoking and tobacco products on college campuses. This is a HUGE debate(consequently, it's explored in further depth on my debates page). On George Washington University on Nov. 15, 2012 students and faculty actually protested the ban and all "lit up" in the campus plaza. Back when the article was written in 2012, 800 schools had banned smoking on premise of the campus. Now the number is sure to be bigger. It's part of an effort to make tobacco and smoke-free places part of the social norm. Experts also say, "college is a time in life when young smokers cement their addictions," therefore if people have strong reasons to quit smoking in college, it becomes less of a problem. If you would like to read the article in it's entirety please follow the link here. (19)
Anti-smoking ADVERTISEMENT: "tips from former smokers ad campaign caused 100,000 smokers to quit, cdc estimates
An article in the Huffington Post explores the effectiveness of an anti-smoking advertisement ran in 2012. The collection of ads focuses on personal stories by people who have suffered from the smoking of tobacco. The CDC researched the effectiveness of the ad by surveying 3,051 smokers before and after the ad was run. They say there was a 12% increase in attempts to quit smoking after these ads, and they estimate 100,000 people quit smoking because of these ads. There were two examples included in the article, and numerous more linked out. I've included one below, and if you would like to read the full article you can access it here. (32)