Salem-News.com Tobacco articles Page 2

Tobacco Now Banned on PCC Campus

The PCC district encompasses a 1,500-square-mile area in northwest Oregon.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - PCC isn't the first to do it. And by all indications, it won't be the last. But PCC is by far the largest institution of higher education in the state. So when the Board of Directors announced that PCC would become tobacco-free today Sept. 9, 2009, it was big news.

"This is something we have been working toward for a long time," said District President Preston Pulliams. "Students have asked for this. Staff and faculty have asked for this. It was the right time to make PCC a healthier place."

Smokeless `E-Cigarettes` Raise New Health Concerns (AUDIO)

Oregon’s Ban has National Implications.

(SALEM, Ore. ONS) - Oregon is the first state to ban the sale of so-called electronic cigarettes, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will soon be in court to fight the same battle nationally.

The battery-operated tube looks like a real paper-and-tobacco cigarette, but contains nicotine and flavors that can be inhaled without producing smoke. The FDA wants to regulate them as drug devices.

FDA Takes Over Tobacco in the U.S.

The FDA says they will seek input from the public as they begin working to implement the Act.

(WASHINGTON D.C.) - On June 22, 2009, President Barack Obama signed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, granting authority to the FDA to regulate tobacco products in the U.S.

In a news release, they state, "FDA looks forward to taking on this challenge and in doing so will partner with public health leaders at our sister agencies, at the state level, and in localities all around the country."

The FDA says the agency will perform its duties by using the best available science to guide the development and implementation of effective public health strategies to reduce the burden of illness and death caused by tobacco products.

Oregon’s Merkley Strengthens Tobacco Control Bill (AUDIO)

One of the Senate additions to the bill is an amendment by Senator Jeff Merkley to include FDA oversight of the newest, dissolvable tobacco products packaged to look like mints or candy.

(PORTLAND, Ore. ONS) - It's being called the strongest anti-tobacco measure since the U.S. Surgeon General ruled more than 40 years ago that smoking causes lung cancer.

On Thursday, the U.S. Senate voted to allow the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate tobacco. The House already passed a similar bill, and must now vote on the Senate's changes.

Medical Marijuana Legalization Explosion

New stock company providing education about the benefits of marijuana in business.

(MOLALLA, Ore.) - Legal medical marijuana started with an apprehensive whimper in California in 1996. Doctor Tod Mikuriya, who had studied cannabis/marijuana as safe effective medicine for about 30 years, was most likely the first doctor to jump into the fray and controversy. The California Medical Board went "ape" and harassed him.

In 1998, Oregon made medical marijuana legal. I was one of the first doctors who jumped in as I was partially disabled from medical malpractice with a spinal cord injury and could no longer do a regular office practice.

Tobacco Use ‘Needless Threat’ to Public Health, Says UN Secretary-General

The World Health Organization said that effective health warnings, especially those that include pictures, have been proven to motivate users to quit and to reduce the appeal of tobacco for those who are not yet addicted.

(GENEVA) - Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged governments everywhere to address tobacco consumption, which he described as a “needless threat” to public health.

In a message to mark World No Tobacco Day, observed on May 31st, Mr. Ban noted that every year, some 5.4 million people die from illnesses caused by tobacco consumption, 80 per cent of them in low- and middle-income countries. Left unchecked, tobacco-related deaths will rise to more than 8 million by 2030.

Oregon Legislature Chews On Spit Tobacco Tax (AUDIO)

Oregon has, in effect, been giving a tax break to companies marketing their products to children, and it's time to stop, claims Queral.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Snuff, chew and dissolvable tobacco could soon cost more in Oregon. The legislature is considering raising the tobacco tax for those products, which haven't seen increases in years.

Backers say raising the tax will help keep children away from tobacco, while opponents say any tax increase is a bad idea in the current economy. Reportedly, sales of smokeless tobacco products have been on the rise as indoor clean air laws have passed.

Oregon Receives $6.2 From Tobacco Companies

The historic multi-billion dollar tobacco settlement compensates states for the cost of treating tobacco-related diseases.

(SALEM, Ore.) - Attorney General John Kroger announced today that Oregon has received $6.2 million in disputed tobacco payments that are part of a master settlement between cigarette-makers and the states.

“This payment comes at a critical time, with the state facing a massive budget crisis. These funds will help pay for essential services to help people in need” Kroger said.

Nicotine and Lung Cancer

Phillip Leveque has spent his life as a Combat Infantryman, Pharmacologist, Toxicologist and Physician.

(MOLALLA, Ore.) - Almost everybody knows that nicotine is that which makes cigarettes the lethal drug which they are. A recent article in the Oregonian newspaper stated that nicotine caused certain diseases.

Tobacco in cigarettes causes a very high number of deaths from lung cancer but death is NOT caused by nicotine. The culprit is TOBACCO TAR which has little to do with the effects of nicotine. For example nicotine skin patches and oral preparations to get users away from smoking do NOT cause any kind of cancer for that matter.

If you are paying attention you’re probably asking “what is going on”?

CDC Survey: As Many Teens Smoke Marijuana as Cigarettes, Cigarette Use Dropping Faster

Crackdown on Tobacco Sales to Kids Continues to Reduce Teen Access to Cigarettes.

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Two just-released federal reports indicate that regulation of tobacco continues to produce a steady drop in teen cigarette use and teen access to tobacco, with current cigarette use by high school students dropping markedly faster than use of marijuana.

The just-released 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports rates of current cigarette use and current marijuana use among teens in grades nine through 12 in a statistical tie at 20 percent and 19.7 percent, respectively.