Most teenagers these days think smoking cigarettes is very dangerous. Yet most adolescents also do not consider frequent binge drinking or occasional marijuana smoking to be anywhere near as risky.These findings are drawn from the responses of 44,979 people ages 12 to 17 who took part in national drug use surveys conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration in 2007 and 2008.
While nearly 70 percent of youths perceived “great risk” from smoking a pack or two of cigarettes a day, only 40 percent thought having five or more alcoholic drinks once or twice a week was very risky, and only 34 percent perceived great risk from smoking marijuana once a month. About half thought using cocaine or LSD once or twice a month was very risky.
Use closely matches the perception of risk, said Pete Delaney, a researcher with the administration, adding that only about 9 percent of youths 12 to 17 said they smoked in 2008, while 26 percent of 16- and 17-year-olds reported drinking. Some 12.7 percent of the older teenagers reporting smoking marijuana.
“We’re doing a great job convincing kids that smoking can really have an impact on their health,” Dr. Delaney said. “We need to learn how we can help them understand other drugs can also cause harm.”
вторник, 29 декабря 2009 г.
среда, 23 декабря 2009 г.
Teen charged in store burglary
A Limestone County investigator said an Elkmont teen took his parents’ vehicle, drove to a convenience store and broke into the business.
Sheriff’s Department Lt. Brad Curnutt said the 15-year-old male took cigarettes, bracelets and baseball caps worth $2,000 from Jeff’s Mini Mart on Alabama 99 on Friday or Saturday.
Investigator Jay Looney recovered cigarettes and caps in a pillowcase at the teen’s home, Curnutt said. Authorities charged the teen with third-degree burglary and unauthorized use of a vehicle and released him into his parents’ custody. Further arrests are pending, Curnutt said.
Sheriff’s Department Lt. Brad Curnutt said the 15-year-old male took cigarettes, bracelets and baseball caps worth $2,000 from Jeff’s Mini Mart on Alabama 99 on Friday or Saturday.
Investigator Jay Looney recovered cigarettes and caps in a pillowcase at the teen’s home, Curnutt said. Authorities charged the teen with third-degree burglary and unauthorized use of a vehicle and released him into his parents’ custody. Further arrests are pending, Curnutt said.
понедельник, 21 декабря 2009 г.
Cigarettes blamed for Marysville garage fire
Carelessly discarded cigarettes were blamed for a fire Thursday night that displaced a family and caused $65,000 damage.
The fire ripped through a garage just after 5 p.m. in the 9500 block of 66th Drive NE, Marysville Fire District spokeswoman Kristen Thornstenson said.
Firefighters quickly contained the blaze to the garage but smoke damage made the home uninhabitable for now, she said.
Three people had to find someplace else to spend the night.
The fire ripped through a garage just after 5 p.m. in the 9500 block of 66th Drive NE, Marysville Fire District spokeswoman Kristen Thornstenson said.
Firefighters quickly contained the blaze to the garage but smoke damage made the home uninhabitable for now, she said.
Three people had to find someplace else to spend the night.
пятница, 18 декабря 2009 г.
DNA of tobacco damage laid bare
THE damage that cigarettes and sunlight wreak on human DNA has been laid bare for the first time, along with the valiant, if eventually futile, effort of cells to repair the harm done.
Scientists have worked out the entire genetic code of two of the most deadly types of cancers - lung and melanoma - revealing the tens of thousands of mutations present in these tumours.
The research, regarded as a pivotal point in the search for new treatments for cancer, reveals a typical smoker would acquire one mutation, on average, for every 15 cigarettes smoked. More than 23,000 mutations were found in the lung cancer cells of a 55-year-old man, most of them caused by the cocktail of chemicals in cigarettes, the British-led team said.
Melanoma cells from a 43-year-old man were found to be ravaged by more than 33,000 mutations.
Mike Stratton, of the Cancer Genome Project at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambridge, said that the research provided an unprecedented view of the genetic impact of smoking and exposure to ultraviolet light.
''We have been able to explore deep into the past of each tumour, uncovering with remarkable clarity the imprints of these environmental mutagens on DNA, which occurred years before the tumour became apparent.''
The ''desperate'' attempts by the genome to defend itself against these attacks were also obvious, Professor Stratton said. ''Our cells fight back furiously to repair the damage, but frequently lose that fight.''
The mutations identified in the studies, which were published in the journal Nature, ranged from changes in single letters in the DNA code to missing sequences or rearrangement of hundreds of thousands of letters.
Tracking down mutations responsible for driving the cancer's development was the next challenge, the researchers said, as it enabled the development of drugs to target the cancer.
Scientists have worked out the entire genetic code of two of the most deadly types of cancers - lung and melanoma - revealing the tens of thousands of mutations present in these tumours.
The research, regarded as a pivotal point in the search for new treatments for cancer, reveals a typical smoker would acquire one mutation, on average, for every 15 cigarettes smoked. More than 23,000 mutations were found in the lung cancer cells of a 55-year-old man, most of them caused by the cocktail of chemicals in cigarettes, the British-led team said.
Melanoma cells from a 43-year-old man were found to be ravaged by more than 33,000 mutations.
Mike Stratton, of the Cancer Genome Project at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambridge, said that the research provided an unprecedented view of the genetic impact of smoking and exposure to ultraviolet light.
''We have been able to explore deep into the past of each tumour, uncovering with remarkable clarity the imprints of these environmental mutagens on DNA, which occurred years before the tumour became apparent.''
The ''desperate'' attempts by the genome to defend itself against these attacks were also obvious, Professor Stratton said. ''Our cells fight back furiously to repair the damage, but frequently lose that fight.''
The mutations identified in the studies, which were published in the journal Nature, ranged from changes in single letters in the DNA code to missing sequences or rearrangement of hundreds of thousands of letters.
Tracking down mutations responsible for driving the cancer's development was the next challenge, the researchers said, as it enabled the development of drugs to target the cancer.
вторник, 15 декабря 2009 г.
45 packs of cigarettes stolen from car wash
A large brick was thrown through the glass door of the Delta Sonic car wash at 2590 Delaware Ave. on Saturday and 45 packs of Newport menthol cigarettes were taken, Buffalo police reported.
The burglary was reported around 7 a. m. The value of the cigarettes was placed at about $317. It’s unknown whether anything else was taken, but video from a surveillance camera is being examined, police said.
The burglary was reported around 7 a. m. The value of the cigarettes was placed at about $317. It’s unknown whether anything else was taken, but video from a surveillance camera is being examined, police said.
понедельник, 14 декабря 2009 г.
Indian reservation cigarettes under fire in NY
The City of New York has accused several cigarette dealers on a Long Island Indian reservation of secretly defying a court order that was supposed to have shut them down.
The charge is the latest in a legal battle between New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and smoke shops on the Poospatuck Indian Reservation over the sale of millions of dollars in untaxed cigarettes.
In August, a federal judge ordered most of the largest shops on the reservation to stop selling untaxed packs to the general public, saying such sales were illegal, despite the state's tolerance of the practice.
Publicly, the shops promised to abide by the ruling, but in a motion filed in federal court on Wednesday, lawyers for the city said three dealers quietly continued to do business through newly formed cigarette stores not covered by the court order.
"It shows contempt for the court's authority," said Eric Proshansky, an attorney for the city.
The tribe's chief, Harry Wallace, didn't immediately return a phone and e-mail message from The Associated Press on Thursday, but told Newsday that the allegations are false.
The city has asked U.S. District Court Judge Carol Amon for thousands of dollars in penalties against the three dealers.
Lawyers for two of the dealers declined comment. Richard Levitt, a lawyer who represents dealer Wayne Harris, wouldn't discuss his client's case in detail but said, "the evidence will show that he is not in contempt of the court's order."
In August, Amon ruled that the tribal shops' longtime practice of selling cigarettes without collecting required state taxes was illegal.
She ordered eight shops to stop selling cigarettes to anyone who wasn't enrolled in the tribe, and barred 11 people affiliated with those stores from further sales to the general public. The three dealers were all named in that order.
The shops have appealed, but all had also publicly claimed to have ceased operations by September.
City lawyers didn't buy it, and investigated with the assistance of agents from the state's tax enforcement division.
The case is being watched closely because of its potential effect on other Indian reservations around the state.
Shops on tribal land now account for nearly a third of all cigarettes sold annually in New York. This booming business is a product of the state's longtime reluctance to collect taxes on cigarettes sold on tribal land, which means reservation shops can offer tobacco at a huge discount.
Relatively few shop owners have ever been charged in criminal court over their dealings in untaxed cigarettes.
The charge is the latest in a legal battle between New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and smoke shops on the Poospatuck Indian Reservation over the sale of millions of dollars in untaxed cigarettes.
In August, a federal judge ordered most of the largest shops on the reservation to stop selling untaxed packs to the general public, saying such sales were illegal, despite the state's tolerance of the practice.
Publicly, the shops promised to abide by the ruling, but in a motion filed in federal court on Wednesday, lawyers for the city said three dealers quietly continued to do business through newly formed cigarette stores not covered by the court order.
"It shows contempt for the court's authority," said Eric Proshansky, an attorney for the city.
The tribe's chief, Harry Wallace, didn't immediately return a phone and e-mail message from The Associated Press on Thursday, but told Newsday that the allegations are false.
The city has asked U.S. District Court Judge Carol Amon for thousands of dollars in penalties against the three dealers.
Lawyers for two of the dealers declined comment. Richard Levitt, a lawyer who represents dealer Wayne Harris, wouldn't discuss his client's case in detail but said, "the evidence will show that he is not in contempt of the court's order."
In August, Amon ruled that the tribal shops' longtime practice of selling cigarettes without collecting required state taxes was illegal.
She ordered eight shops to stop selling cigarettes to anyone who wasn't enrolled in the tribe, and barred 11 people affiliated with those stores from further sales to the general public. The three dealers were all named in that order.
The shops have appealed, but all had also publicly claimed to have ceased operations by September.
City lawyers didn't buy it, and investigated with the assistance of agents from the state's tax enforcement division.
The case is being watched closely because of its potential effect on other Indian reservations around the state.
Shops on tribal land now account for nearly a third of all cigarettes sold annually in New York. This booming business is a product of the state's longtime reluctance to collect taxes on cigarettes sold on tribal land, which means reservation shops can offer tobacco at a huge discount.
Relatively few shop owners have ever been charged in criminal court over their dealings in untaxed cigarettes.
вторник, 1 декабря 2009 г.
NY Budget Cuts Turn Toward Anti-Smoking Campaign
In trying to solve the state's fiscal crisis, Governor David Paterson is expected to pull funding for the state's anti-tobacco program.
Advocates say the state's anti-tobacco program has proven very effective, and these proposed funding cuts would be a step in the wrong direction.
Cassie Coombs, Director of the Southern Tier Tobacco Awareness Community Partnership or STTAC, tells me youth smoking rates are the lowest they've ever been in the state.
Governor Paterson’s plan to cut $10 million could be devastating to STTAC's programs.
“We really want to see the program continue to reduce those rates, but also offer assistance to the adults that want to quit as well,” Coombs said.
Right now, STTAC reaches tobacco users in Chemung, Schuyler and Steuben counties.
But Coombs says a funding cut would limit the communities they're able to serve.
The governor's plan could also reduce funding for programs that provide free nicotine patches.
Last year, the state yanked $40,000 from STACC's funding.
Coombs says that's taken a toll on the program's effectiveness, and this would only make it worse.
“For the community members they're not getting that outreach,” she said. “Those smokers that want to quit, we've seen a reduction in quit-line calls.”
A spokesman for Governor Paterson says the state will continue the anti-smoking advertising campaign and still provide free nicotine patches to smokers.
Advocates say the state's anti-tobacco program has proven very effective, and these proposed funding cuts would be a step in the wrong direction.
Cassie Coombs, Director of the Southern Tier Tobacco Awareness Community Partnership or STTAC, tells me youth smoking rates are the lowest they've ever been in the state.
Governor Paterson’s plan to cut $10 million could be devastating to STTAC's programs.
“We really want to see the program continue to reduce those rates, but also offer assistance to the adults that want to quit as well,” Coombs said.
Right now, STTAC reaches tobacco users in Chemung, Schuyler and Steuben counties.
But Coombs says a funding cut would limit the communities they're able to serve.
The governor's plan could also reduce funding for programs that provide free nicotine patches.
Last year, the state yanked $40,000 from STACC's funding.
Coombs says that's taken a toll on the program's effectiveness, and this would only make it worse.
“For the community members they're not getting that outreach,” she said. “Those smokers that want to quit, we've seen a reduction in quit-line calls.”
A spokesman for Governor Paterson says the state will continue the anti-smoking advertising campaign and still provide free nicotine patches to smokers.
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