Smoking Weed as Teen Reduces Adult IQ

For years, regular marijuana users have dismissed cautionary warnings that the habit killed brain cells, believing it was some kind of urban myth. Well, now scientists have produced evidence to back up the myth: a study of more than 1,000 people in New Zealand who were followed over two decades found that those who started habitually smoking marijuana before age 18 eventually showed an 8-point drop in IQ. The study, published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, will give parents hefty ammunition in those anti-drug talks with their kids.

Because the average IQ is 100 points, a drop of just eight points in IQ would mean falling from the 50th percentile to the 29th percentile in terms of intelligence—in other words, a drop from average to way below average. The researchers started with a baseline intelligence for all study subjects, testing them when they were under 13 and hadn’t yet started smoking and then assessing them at five different points in their lives—ages 18, 21, 26, 32, and 38. They again tested IQ at age 38.

The researchers assessed marijuana use and tested intelligence. he authors also controlled for alcohol use, other drug use and education level. According to the study, the eight-point drop was found in subjects who started smoking in adolescence and persisted in “habitual smoking”—using it at least four days per week—in three or more of the five testing points. People who started smoking in adolescence but used marijuana less persistently still had a hit to their IQ’s, but it was less pronounced than the group that used it early and persistently. Those who never used marijuana actually got smarter by nearly one IQ point on average.

Madeline Meier, lead researcher and a post-doctoral associate at Duke University, said that persistent use of marijuana in adolescence appeared to blunt intelligence, attention and memory. More persistent marijuana use was associated with greater cognitive decline. “Collectively, these findings are consistent with speculation that cannabis use in adolescence, when the brain is undergoing critical development, may have neurotoxic effects,” Meier writes in the study. Alarmingly, subjects who stopped using marijuana for a year still showed the persistence of adverse effects and some neurological deficits.

But those who didn’t start smoking until after adolescence showed no adverse effects on intelligence. Experts in child development said the reasons adolescents may be more susceptible to the harmful effects of marijuana may have to do with a substance called myelin. Myelin can be thought of as a kind of insulation for nerve cells in the brain that also helps speed brain signals along — and in adolescent brains, the protective coating it forms is not yet complete. “Frontal lobe myelination is not fully completed until age 25 years or so, and the pre-myelinated brain is more susceptible to damage from neurotoxins,” says Dr. Richard Wahl, director of adolescent Medicine at the University of Arizona. “Cannabis, most likely, is a neurotoxin in high and continuous doses.”

Zambia: New Packaging for Tobacco

IT is a fact that tobacco is extremely harmful to health. However, this does not seem to deter many people from smoking. The tobacco problem is a global challenge and because we are living in a global village, trends in one country will most likely spread to others. Recently, the Australian government came up with a law to enforce plain packaging on cigarette packets. The law stipulates that all cigarette packets regardless of the brand be packaged plainly but with images of the various ailments, which tobacco causes. These ailments range from mouth cancer, lung diseases, and respiratory problems, among others.

This did not go down well with the tobacco companies that argued that the value of their trademarks would be destroyed if they were no longer able to display their distinctive colours, brand designs and logos on packets of cigarettes. They took the government to court but the Australian High Court recently upheld the Government's decision to introduce plain packaging. Thus, in December, packets will instead come in a uniformly drab shade of olive and feature dire health warnings and graphic photographs of smoking's health effects. The government, which has urged other countries to adopt similar rules, hopes the new packs will make smoking as unglamorous as possible. Zambia has a law that stops smoking in public.

However, stricter measures are needed especially that many smokers start in their teens. Many countries are now facing the pressure of following Australia's route and Zambia is no exception. Zambia Consumer Association (ZACA) executive director, Muyunda Ililonga has encouraged the Zambian Government to follow suit. According to Mr Ililonga, "the ruling in Australia is a landmark victory for public health globally. It sends a strong message that the industry can be defeated."

The new law will now make it illegal, for example, for the cigarette manufacturers to market cigarettes in 'slim' packages to women to promote the belief that smoking is a way to stay thin and control weight. The tobacco companies have opposed plain packaging more ferociously than any other tobacco control measure because they know that plain packaging would have a major impact on smoking in Australia - and in other countries that might follow Australia's lead.

"The cigarette companies hate nothing more than laws that restrict their ability to sell more cigarettes," says Mr Ililonga, adding that "their legal challenges are destined to fail because the courts accept that more cigarette sales mean more sickness and more deaths, and that governments have a duty to act to reduce these harms." Mr Ililonga advised that a Government determined to protect its people would always succeed regardless of obstacles. "We feel the Government must follow the pioneering journey undertaken by the Australian government in standing up against tobacco." His sentiments that the attractive packaging is one of the ways in which the tobacco industry advertise their deadly products are echoed by Charlie Mumba (not his real name).

E-cigarettes no threat to heart

Electronic cigarettes commonly called e-cigarette used by many trying to kick the habit acts much like a cigarette producing an inhaled vapor that generates the physical sensation, appearance and usually flavor of an inhaled cigarette with some containing nicotine. These cigarettes have been under fire for the negative health effects they produce mainly heart disease. View slideshow: E-cigarettes and health effects According to a new study researchers say their study reveals that e-cigarettes that contain nicotine have no adverse events on the heart.

In this new study researchers from Athens-based Onassis Cardiac Surgery Center had examined the heart activity of young daily smokers after one regular cigarette and compared the heart activity to 22 people who smoked electronic cigarettes for seven minutes. Dr. Konstantions Farsalinos, cardiologist (fellow) at Onasis Cardiac Surgery Center and one of the researchers related while the smokers had shown significant heart dysfunction such as heart beats or blood pressure the effects from e-cigarettes had minimal impact on the heart. Dr. Farsalinos commented "Currently available data suggest that electronic cigarettes are far less harmful, and substituting tobacco with electronic cigarettes may be beneficial to health," according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

According to researchers past studies have found that e-cigarettes would need to be smoked daily from four to twelve months to acquire the levels the carcinogen nitrosamines that are present in one cigarette. Dr. Farsalinos did note that larger studies are needed to examine the possible long term effects of electronic cigarettes. This study was presented at the annual meeting of the European Society of Cardiology. The Wall Street Journal had reported the sale of electronic cigarettes has doubled in the United States over the last five years from $250 to $500 million in total cigarettes as reported by The Heartland Institute. The debate of electronic cigarettes wages on as part of the medical community argue there are still dangers to electronic cigarettes including the delay of smoking cessation . The other side of the community advocates they could have benefits as a smoking cessation program.

Pina Colada E-Cigs Leading Push Into Smokeless Tobacco

The advertisement features a scowling granny in an Argyle cardigan. “Dear Smoking Ban,” she says, brandishing a middle finger. The ad, which has appeared in several U.S. publications, touts Blu Ecigs, a maker of electronic cigarettes acquired earlier this year by Lorillard Inc. (LO) for $135 million in cash. “Take back your freedom to smoke anywhere with blu electronic cigarettes,” the ad continues.

“It’s the most satisfying way to tell smoking bans to kiss off. OK, maybe the second-most satisfying way.” In recent years, U.S. tobacco companies have rolled out a range of smokeless products, from battery-powered e-cigarettes to lozenges laced with tobacco. Lorillard, Altria Group Inc. (MO) and Reynolds American Inc. have tried various marketing tactics, including positioning the products as a way for nicotine addicts to thumb their noses at the anti-smoking police.

Yet because it’s hard persuading smokers that an e-cig or lozenge is a substitute for lighting up, these alternative products account for about 1 percent of the $90 billion U.S. cigarette market, said David Adelman, a Morgan Stanley analyst. “Consumers like the tobacco products they currently consume,” said Adelman, who is based in New York. “This isn’t like asking someone to change their laundry detergent or the type of mop they use.”

 The industry is trying to goose sales as U.S. smokers, increasingly hemmed in by higher cigarette taxes and smoke-free zones, puff less and less each year. Cigarette volume has been falling at an annual rate of 3 percent to 4 percent. Meanwhile, sales of smokeless products, including traditional snuff, grew about 7.5 percent from 2010 to 2011, according to Euromonitor International.

Differing Legal Opinions On Cigarette Packaging Laws

Packaging of cigarettes is a subject of controversy between cigarette makers, governments, and law-makers across the world. In their zeal to protect consumers from the indisputably harmful effects of smoking, governments have imposed increasingly tougher restrictions on brand advertising through the cigarette pack, and mandated the placement of graphics that detail the health hazards in horrific detail, such as a hole in the neck, mouth ulcers, and damaged lungs.

Tobacco companies have been challenging these measures in courts, considering the adverse effect on their businesses. Interestingly, courts have differed in their pronouncements in these cases. In Australia, the country’s High Court attracted worldwide attention when it recently set aside a challenge by tobacco companies to the government’s “plain packaging” legislation, which bans the use of brand logos from cigarette packs, and instead makes it compulsory to display graphics such as those mentioned above.

Claiming that the law impinged on their intellectual property rights, tobacco giants British American Tobacco PLC (NYSEAMEX:BTI) (LON:BATS), Britain’s Imperial Tobacco, Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM), and Japan Tobacco Inc (TYO:2914) had challenged its constitutional validity in the Australian High Court. Though the full judgment is awaited, the High Court opined by a majority out of seven judges, that the laws did not violate Australia’s constitution, effectively clearing the tables for the law to take effect from December 1 – cigarette packs and tobacco products will thereafter be sold only in plain olive green packs sans branding logos, and must display warnings of the hazards to health and graphics thereof.

This historic judgment was followed by action in Australian state, Tasmania’s legislature, which unanimously voted to ban the sale of tobacco products to any person born after 2000, as reported by the NYT. The proposal was introduced in the legislature by MP Ivan Dean, who said, “This would mean that we would have a generation of people not exposed to tobacco products.”

City leaders consider smoking ban on Duluth Lakewalk

A new ban on tobacco and the smoking of products like synthetic marijuana on Duluth’s Lakewalk and adjacent parks is making its way through the City Council. A proposed ordinance was read for the first time Monday but council members won’t have their first discussion on the ban until their next meeting, Sept. 10.

The ban would apply to the Lakewalk and its connected parks, including Leif Erikson and Lake Place. All tobacco use, including chewing tobacco, would be banned under the new rule. It would also do away with the “smoking of other deleterious products,” an attempt to include products like incense sprayed with chemicals to mimic the effects of drugs like marijuana.

That’s an apparent reaction to complaints about people gathering in Lake Place Park to smoke synthetic products they purchase at the Last Place On Earth, the Superior Street shop under scrutiny from Duluth Police and the city under nuisance rules. Customers there often enter Lake Place a few steps from the shop to smoke the controversial products. Several people on the Lakewalk on Monday said they approved of cracking down on synthetic marijuana, but some were less enthusiastic about banning tobacco.

Duluth resident Christina Woods, who is Anishinaabe, thinks people should be able to smoke cigarettes on the Lakewalk because, to some, smoking is a sacred activity, and Lake Superior is a sacred place to the Anishinaabe and other native people. “Smoking a cigarette in this area is a form of prayer and spiritual connection,” she said. “If it were banned, that would limit where we are able to practice our spirituality in the community. That would include laying tobacco or smoking it. Not to say people don’t abuse it, but for the most part it’s supposed to be sacred.” She doesn’t think cigarettes and synthetic marijuana should fall under the same ban. Mick Roby, of Brainerd, doesn’t like cigarette-smoking, but doesn’t think it should be banned from the Lakewalk.

“People have rights,” he said. “But I am definitely anti-smoking.” As a tourist, he’s noticed the crowds gathered outside the Last Place on Earth. He agreed with Woods that the synthetic marijuana purchased there should be regulated. “I am not in favor of artificial marijuana,” he said. “It falls in the hands of children.” Kari Kelso of Moose Lake said she drives to Duluth to use the Lakewalk about three times a week with her border collie, Katie. She said she would support a ban on smoking on the Lakewalk for health reasons and a more pleasant atmosphere.

“It’s such a beautiful place,” she said. “You just want to enjoy the ambience and you get a whiff of some kind of smoke. I don’t think it needs to be around here. And you see cigarette butts a lot. Pollution is not the greatest thing.” Minneapolis resident Dave Petree was smoking outside his hotel in Canal Park. Another sanction put on smokers by the city would be too much, he said. “There are so many places we can’t smoke,” he said, such as restaurants, bars and hotels. The outdoors should be different. “You’re outside in the air.”

Duluth resident Tyler LaRose was standing outside the Last Place on Earth on Monday. He said he understood why such a ban would be proposed for the sake of health, but that people had the right to smoke cigarettes or synthetic marijuana wherever they wanted outside in public places. “If you’re going to smoke, smoke,” he said. “If you’re not, don’t.” Duluth has had a policy asking people not to smoke in city parks for nearly a decade, but it is not an ordinance. Signs simply ask people to not smoke.

Melbourne council bans smoking in public places

Boroondara Council, which covers suburbs including Camberwell and Kew, in the city's inner east, passed the motion in a vote last night. The ban covers playgrounds, bus and tram stops, sports grounds and all council buildings within council boundaries. Mayor Heinz Kreutz says the law was passed unanimously, but residents have nothing to fear.

"It's very much about education. We're not really interested in the fines as such," he said. "So when someone forgets about this or has a cigarette near a playground, our local laws officers [will] have a conversation with them, explain what this is about and in nine out of ten cases we've found that people simply adopt the rule."

However, Mr Kreutz says repeat offenders will be fined. He says for example if there is someone deliberately smoking near a three-year-old on a slide, who will not listen to reason, then they will be fined. "With any law there needs to be some response, so we have a penalty point system and it may be anywhere between one and five penalty points, is between $1 and $500, depending on the severity of the disregard," he said.

Kicking the Habit: Sex Differences in Smoking Cessation

The researchers used data from major national surveys in the United States, Canada, and England to approximate the rates of smoking cessation by age in men and women. They did find a pattern of sex differences in smoking cessation which was consistent across all surveyed countries. According to the study, "below age 50, women were more likely to have given up smoking completely compared to men, while among older age groups, men were more likely to have quit than women." Different age groups had sex differences in smoking cessation but the authors are not sure what accounted for the finding.

This most recent study is the largest epidemiological study to date, and the authors have found no solid evidence to support the longstanding claims that smoking cessation is more difficult for women. According to the study, "The myth of female disadvantage at quitting smoking is bad, first and foremost, for women," because they may get discouraged quickly and end their efforts prematurely. But the authors also expressed that it is detrimental for men who may think they are at an advantage and then not put forth the proper effort to end their smoking habit.

The study claims, "it is time to put aside the idea that women are less successful than men at giving up smoking." Despite the findings of this new study, the difficulty of smoking cessation based on sex should not be discounted. According to several studies, women experience more severe withdrawal symptoms than men when quitting smoking, which can make the act of quitting much harder and more uncomfortable for women. In addition, women are less likely than men to benefit from nicotine replacement therapy, which also contributes to the difficulty some women experience when trying to quit. Smoking is a difficult habit to quit and tobacco use can lead to nicotine dependence and serious health problems. Smoking cessation can dramatically reduce the risk of health problems caused from tobacco use.

Though it may require multiple intervention methods to curb dependence from chronic tobacco use, effective treatments are available. According to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, "there are more former smokers than current smokers," in our country today. Kicking the smoking habit is the most important step a smoker can take to improve the length and quality of his or her life. There are an abundance of options available to help both men and women quit their nicotine addictions.

It is also important to note that women who quit smoking relapse for different reasons than men. Weight control, stress, and negative emotions are all reasons cited by women who have relapsed and these issues need to be taken into account for any successful cessation program. While it is important to note that the majority of tobacco smokers quit on their own without using evidence-based cessation treatments, here are some effective methods to do so recommended by CDC:

• Brief clinical interventions (i.e., when a doctor takes 10 minutes or less to deliver advice and assistance)
• Counseling (individual, group or telephone/online)
• Behavioral cessation therapies
• Medication (e.g. nicotine replacement products, and prescription and non-prescription medication including certain SSRI's) For women, proper weight management, emotional and psychological support should also be applied to cessation efforts and can facilitate a smoke-free lifestyle long-term.
Whether male or female, smoking cessation is a challenge, but one that can be overcome and lead to tremendous improvement in one's quality of life and overall health.

Smoking Ban: More Important Matters To Handle

We are residents of Carolina Beach, and have been for the past twenty-nine years. We are taxpayers. We are voters. We understand that Lonnie Lashley has introduced the idea of banning smoking in the municipal areas of Carolina Beach. It is also our understanding that this proposal is to be discussed publicly at the August 14th Town Council meeting. Why then, after watching the news on WECT tonight, did it sound like some of you have already made up your mind to enact this ban? Are you disregarding public input, or have you been contacted by the 5,000+ year-round residents already and are informed enough to make your decision?

We have watched, with interest, the controversy surrounding Wrightsville Beach's attempt to pass a smoking ban. We also read their proposed ordinance, which Mr. Lashley submitted in your agenda packet at the July meeting. We agree with their decision to put this smoking ban on their ballot in November. That is a logical and fair decision for their residents. However, do we need to remind you that you represent the residents of Carolina Beach, not Wrightsville Beach? We don't need another "ordinance" written in our books. We have plenty of them, including Section 14-35, that details what is considered litter on the beach, if that is what your issue is. Section 14-44 details how violators of our litter laws should be penalized.

 Yet, each day we pick up cans, bottles, bags, and other trash off the beach and surrounding areas. But we don't seem to recall the last time we heard a citation was issued to someone for littering. Maybe your issue is the smoker himself/herself? Are you really concerned about smoke and whether this smoke disperses quickly enough in the air as to not offend others? Come on now...we have 10+ knot winds everyday. That should speak for itself. We have discussed this issue with many of our friends here on the beach. They all think this proposal is absurd. Some smoke and some do not. Several individuals suggested that you might be fearful of the smokers who might head our way if Wrightsville Beach passes their ban first.

We would like to think that you all are more intelligent than that. On second thought, is that your concern? Our new Police Chief, Kurt Bartley, and his officers have enough to do already, and as professionals, we can't imagine assigning them the responsibility of citing a smoker standing on the beach. They have more important matters to handle. So who will be the enforcers of this smoking ban? Perhaps you? Folks, don't let emotion get in the way of your logic. You will hear from some residents regarding this smoking ban. But many are just trying to live day to day, and don't have the time or opportunity to call you or write their opinion. We bet they will, however, respond if you put it on the ballot. Let the voters decide if they want this ban in our town.

5-year survey confirms banning smoking in Uruguay

The International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project (the ITC Project) today launched a new report on the effectiveness of tobacco control policies in Uruguay. The ITC Uruguay Survey (the Survey) found that the country's world-leading, comprehensive tobacco control strategy has had positive effects on raising awareness of the true harms of smoking, reducing misperceptions about "light/mild" cigarettes, reducing exposure to secondhand smoke, and reducing the demand for tobacco products through tax increases.

The strategy has been accompanied by increased support for tobacco control and smoke-free policies, with two-thirds of smokers in 2011 supporting even stronger government action to protect the public from the harms of smoking, up from about half of smokers in 2006. The findings are based upon three waves of the ITC Uruguay Survey, conducted between 2006 and 2011. The Survey polled representative samples of smokers in Montevideo, the capital city, and (since 2008) in an additional four cities throughout the country—Durazno, Maldonado, Rivera, and Salto.

During this period, Uruguay implemented several important tobacco control policies in line with the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), the first-ever health treaty, which the country ratified in 2004. These policies were: a comprehensive ban on indoor smoking in public places, a ban on tobacco advertising and promotion, and several tobacco tax increases. In addition, Uruguay's Government increased the size of pictorial warning labels from 50% to 80% of the front and back of cigarette packs, implemented highly graphic warnings on the health effects of smoking, and introduced a ban on multiple brand presentations.

By comparing data from each wave of the Survey in the context of policy changes during the preceding period, researchers were able to measure the impact of those policies on key attitudes and behaviors. Uruguay introduced graphic health warnings in 2006, but in 2009-10 (in between Waves 2 and 3 of the Survey) the health warnings were enhanced with stronger graphic images and in size, increasing to 80% of the front and back of the pack, becoming the largest in the world. This enhancement led to significant increases in several indicators of warning effectiveness included in the ITC Uruguay Survey. Smokers were significantly more likely to report noticing the warnings often or very often (from 65.1% at Wave 2 before the enhanced warnings to 70.9% at Wave 3, after the enhanced warnings were introduced); they were also more likely to report that the warnings made them think about the health risks of smoking (increasing from 33.1% to 43.1%), and more likely to report that the warnings made them more likely to think about quitting (from 15.6% to 30.3%).

 In addition, although concern about personal health was consistently the most common reason for quitting among smokers (79% at Wave 3), the number of smokers citing "Warning labels on cigarette packs" increased from 21.6% at Wave 2 to 32.4% at Wave 3. This represented the largest increase between Waves of the Survey and coincided with the introduction of the larger warning labels. Uruguay was the first country to ban differentiated branding (i.e. eliminating the possibility of multiple sub-brands with different colours and package designs) in February 2010, in between Waves 2 and 3 of the Survey.

The introduction of this ban was associated with a decline in the percentage of smokers who held incorrect beliefs about the relative health harms of cigarette brands. The percentage of smokers believing that light cigarettes are less harmful than regular cigarettes decreased from 29.4% to 15.2%; the percentage of smokers believing that light cigarettes are less addictive decreased from 17.7% to 13.4%; and the percentage of smokers believing that light cigarettes make it easier to quit smoking decreased from 15.3% to 9.7% at Wave 3. Decreasing misperceptions was a primary goal of the ban on multiple brand presentations.

 Dr Eduardo Bianco, a cardiologist and President of the Tobacco Epidemic Research Center of Uruguay (CIET), commented: "Our government has taken a lead in Latin America, and indeed the world, by being the first to introduce such a comprehensive package of tobacco control policies. We are delighted that this study proves that these policies are working. However, these data also underline that we have further to go to protect smokers and non-smokers in Uruguay. Increasing taxes on tobacco products is considered to be one of the most effective components of a comprehensive tobacco control strategy, particularly in dissuading youth from starting to smoke.

Despite several increases in tobacco tax during the Survey period, still there is room for additional taxation to reduce demand for cigarettes and encourage smokers to quit. In addition, only half of smokers who visited a doctor in the previous year reported receiving advice to quit from a health professional during the visit. This is a missed opportunity to help improve health outcomes for Uruguayans and suggests that the provision of cessation advice should become standard procedure for health professionals. Overall, I hope that these data demonstrate the progress that can be achieved in a relatively short timeframe and encourage the adoption of similar national-level legislation in other countries."

Cypriots still heaviest smokers in EU

CYPRIOTS are the heaviest smokers in the EU puffing 20.5 cigarettes daily, according to a survey conducted as part of the European Commission’s campaign ‘Ex-smokers are unstoppable.’ According to the survey – conducted by iCoach, a digital health platform aimed at helping smokers kick the habit - only one in ten Cypriot smokers have given up smoking, since 2011, and those who still smoked, consumed the highest number of cigarettes in the EU at 20.5 cigarettes daily.

However, most smokers in Europe - 46 per cent - consume 11-20 cigarettes daily, with the EU average amounting to 14.2 cigarettes daily. Cyprus was also ranked eighth among European countries, with 30 per cent of its population currently smoking. Ranking first was Greece at 40 per cent and last was Sweden at 13 per cent. The digital tool for quitting is available online for free in 23 languages including Greek. It has no time limitation so users can progress at their own pace until they manage to quit.

It also offers users interactive functions such as a daily diary, useful advice, access to forums, but also mini tests that give both encouragement and a better insight into their progress. Through the programme over 217,000 Europeans, aged between 25 and 34, have sought help to quit, with studies showing that iCoach is mainly used by men at 56 per cent. The same is true for Cyprus where most of the registrations are by men at 69 per cent. Seven countries however, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden, report a majority of women registering.

Activists claim success for anti-tobacco campaign

Supporters of an initiative campaign that would ban smoking in North Dakota bars, motels and other workplaces turned in 21,000 petition signatures Thursday, saying they were confident their efforts would put the issue to a statewide vote. The measure’s backers needed signatures from at least 13,452 North Dakota voters to put the proposed law on the November ballot. Secretary of State Al Jaeger has about one month to decide whether the petitions are sufficient.

 North Dakota already prohibits smoking in most enclosed public places, but the proposed new anti-tobacco law goes further. It would ban smoking in bars, motels, tobacco shops and private nursing home rooms. The initiative includes new penalties for tobacco violations, and states that bar owners who allow smoking could have their liquor licenses revoked. Chelsey Matter, a West Fargo respiratory therapist who is chairwoman of the initiative campaign, said she believed North Dakotans have become more accepting of anti-smoking regulations.

 “I think people get this issue now,” she said Thursday. “I think there’s just so much more momentum, and a lot more education that’s taken place since then.” Twenty-nine states, including Minnesota, South Dakota and Montana, already have comprehensive laws that cover bars and all public workplaces, she said. A handful of North Dakota cities already do not allow smoking in bars, including Fargo, West Fargo, Grand Forks and Bismarck. Rudie Martinson, director of the North Dakota Hospitality Association, said the trade group would oppose the measure.

The association represents restaurants and bars. “Our position on this hasn’t changed,” Martinson said Thursday. “We believe that (whether to allow smoking) should be up to the business operator and the demands that their customers place on them.” The smoking prohibition is one of six citizen initiatives that could be on the November ballot. Others seek to legalize medical marijuana, make animal cruelty a felony and pass a constitutional amendment requiring the University of North Dakota to keep its Fighting Sioux nickname. The deadline for turning in petitions to Secretary of State Al Jaeger’s office is midnight Wednesday.

 Supporters of the medical marijuana initiative and a constitutional amendment that would limit the Legislature’s ability to regulate farming and ranching said Wednesday they had enough signatures and will turn in their paperwork before the deadline. Advocates for a proposed felony law targeting animal cruelty and an initiative to set aside a portion of North Dakota’s oil tax collections for conservation projects said Thursday they would also be turning in their petitions. The sixth proposed measure would change the North Dakota Constitution to require that the University of North Dakota’s sports teams be known as the Fighting Sioux.

 In June, 67 percent of North Dakota voters approved an initiative that allows UND to retire the nickname, which the NCAA considers demeaning to American Indians. No decision has been made about whether to submit the Fighting Sioux amendment in time for the November election, or target the June 2014 primary, which is the next scheduled statewide election. Amendment supporters have until Dec. 12 to turn in their petitions.

Cigarette smoking down, tobacco use up

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fired off a good-news, bad-news press release Thursday, explaining that while cigarette consumption continued an 11-year downward trend with a 2.5 percent decline from 2010 to 2011, consumption of pipe tobacco and cigars rose like a plume of smoke. From 2000 to 2011, use of pipe tobacco climbed a whopping 482 percent and consumption of large cigars rose 233 percent.

The increase in cigars, according to the CDC, was due largely to tobacco manufacturers adding weight to many small cigars so they can be classified as large cigars. Why does that matter? It enables them to avoid higher taxes and regulation, while retaining a size and shape similar to cigarettes. Tobacco use is the top cause of preventable death and disease in the United States.

Minor tobacco sales continue to fall, reach all-time low under federal-state program

Sales of tobacco to minors in the U.S. reached an all-time low in 2011 under a federal and state inspection program intended to curb underage tobacco use, according to a report released Thursday. The violation rate of tobacco sales to underage youth at retailers nationwide has fallen from about 40 percent in 1997 to 8.5 percent in the last fiscal year, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration. The rate is based on the results of random, unannounced inspections conducted at stores to see whether they’d sell tobacco products to a customer under the age of 18.

In March, the U.S. Surgeon General said more needs to be done to keep young Americans from using tobacco, including new bans and increased taxes on tobacco products. It was the first comprehensive look at youth tobacco use from the surgeon general’s office in nearly two decades. That point was driven home in a separate report Thursday from another federal agency. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that a large increase in the consumption of cigars and loose tobacco products offset the decline in cigarette consumption last year. Adult cigarette consumption fell 2.5 percent between 2010 and 2011, but consumption of other forms of smoked tobacco products increased more than 17 percent in the same period, according to the report, which highlighted disparities in taxes and classifications for tobacco products as part of the reason for the increase.

 Almost one in five high school-aged teens smokes, according to the surgeon general’s office’s report. The numbers are down from earlier decades, but the rate of decline has slowed. It also said that more than 80 percent of smokers begin by age 18 and 99 percent of adult smokers in the U.S. start by age 26. “We know that if we can stop kids from smoking before they turn 18, the chance that they will become smokers as adults is actually very low. By reducing retail access, we’re reducing one of the ways that kids can get introduced to tobacco and become smokers,” said Susan Marsiglia Gray, who oversees the Synar Regulation program.

The program, named for late U.S. Rep. Mike Synar of Oklahoma, is a federal mandate requiring each state to document that the rate of tobacco sales to minors is no more than 20 percent at the risk losing millions in federal funds for alcohol and other drug abuse prevention and treatment services. In the last fiscal year, 34 states reported a retailer violation rate below 10 percent, according to the Thursday report. It was the sixth time that no state was found to be out of compliance. Nevada reported the lowest rate of 1.1 percent, and Oregon reported the highest rate at 19.3 percent. However, the report said that children may instead be getting their cigarettes and tobacco products from places other than convenience stores or gas stations.

The latest federal data shows that about 14 percent of minors reported buying their own cigarettes in stores in 2009, down from more than 23 percent a decade earlier. “Reducing retail access is an important part of a comprehensive tobacco control program, but it’s only one piece,” said Marsiglia Gray, adding that states need to be involved with other tobacco control activities, such as increasing tobacco taxes, enacting smoking bans and conducting anti-smoking campaigns.