Alcohol and tobacco sales climb during early months of COVID-19 pandemic. Keck Medicine of USC study notes more dramatic increases among younger adults, ethnic minorities, those with younger children and/or large families and those with higher incomes
Tag: Tobacco
Alcohol Plus Cadmium (via Smoking) Can Amplify Blood Pressure and Cardiovascular Risk
Heavy drinking combined with cadmium exposure — most commonly via smoking — escalates the risk of hypertension, according to a new study. Hypertension (high blood pressure) affects 26 percent of the global population and is the leading cause of cardiovascular disease and mortality. Alcohol consumption and cadmium exposure are known risk factors for hypertension. Exposure to cadmium, a metal that accumulates in body organs, occurs mainly through smoking, which often accompanies heavy drinking. Other cadmium sources include certain foods, air pollution, and wine and beer. Alcohol increases the absorption of cadmium in the body, and evidence suggests that the two substances contribute to hypertension via shared physiological pathways. The new study, in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, is the first known epidemiological investigation of the combined effects of alcohol and cadmium on blood pressure.
Study finds new evidence of health threat from chemicals in marijuana and tobacco smoke
Scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have uncovered new evidence of the potential health risks of chemicals in tobacco and marijuana smoke.
Vaping could nearly triple the chance of smoking in teens
A new study offers strong evidence that kids who use e-cigarettes are more likely to take up smoking or smokeless tobacco, researchers say. Teen boys who vaped were almost three times as likely to start smoking as other teen boys with similar risk profiles and more than two times as likely to try smokeless tobacco, the study from The Ohio State University found.
Labeling paid ‘influencer’ vaping posts as ads draws attention
Social media influencers vaping glamorously into their social media feeds are often not doing so for free. And new research suggests that calling out their pay-to-play posts as advertisements in a plain, obvious way might have an impact on young people.
Researchers discover how bean plants fend off famished foes
A team led by scientists at the University of Washington and the University of California, San Diego has discovered that cowpeas — a type of bean plant — harbor receptors on the surface of their cells that can detect a compound in caterpillar saliva and initiate anti-herbivore defenses.
Are E-cigarettes Safer Than Cigarettes? Study Sheds Light on the Issue
Scientists and medical professionals have long debated whether pod e-cigarettes are a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes. A new study provides some insight.
Rutgers Experts Urge Ban of Menthol Cigarettes Nationwide
Rutgers experts discuss why actions at the state and federal level need to be taken to ban menthol-flavored tobacco products
Study finds cancer mutations accumulate in distinct regions based on structure of genome and mutational causes
A study finds that cancer mutations occur in distinct patterns based on the 3D structure of the genome and the underlying cause of the mutation. This helps us to understand cancer better and may lead to new treatment approaches.
CDC Data Shows E-cigarette Makers Continues to Prey on Youth – and FDA Policy Lets Them
Today, the CDC released data from the National Youth Tobacco Survey showing that in 2020, 20 percent of high school students and nearly 5 percent of middle school students used e-cigarettes. Most concerning, the data shows that among youth e-cigarette users, 38.9 percent of high school students and 20 percent of middle school students reported using e-cigarettes on 20 or more of the past 30 days; 22.5 percent of high school users and 9.4 percent of middle school users reported daily use.
Study looks at smoking in pre-colonization North America
For the first time, researchers use a metabolomics approach to find more detailed information about how tobacco use and smoking practices changed after colonization in North America.
Heavier smoking linked to skyrocketing health risks
Each cigarette smoked a day by heavier smokers increases the risk of contracting some diseases by more than 30 per cent, according to a new international study published today.
When it comes to longevity, any exercise is good exercise
ASU sociologist finds team-oriented exercises benefit us socially and can also increase life span
Link Found Between Pet Ownership and Health
Research found that pet ownership improves health in some instances, but increases risk in others.
Key to COVID-19 therapeutics could be grown in…tobacco?
A decade ago, when the National Institutes of Health needed to place a high-security biocontainment laboratory in Kentucky, capable of safely studying dangerous and emerging infectious diseases, they turned to the University of Louisville.
Just as Tobacco Advertising Causes Teen Smoking, Exposure to Alcohol Ads Causes Teens to Drink
Exposure to alcohol advertising changes teens’ attitudes about alcohol and can cause them to start drinking, finds a new analysis led by NYU School of Global Public Health and NYU Grossman School of Medicine. The study, which appears in a special supplement of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, uses a framework developed to show causality between tobacco advertising and youth smoking and applies it to alcohol advertising.
New Graphic Tobacco Warnings and the First Amendment
SUMMARYIn an article for JAMA Oncology, Tony Yang, a professor of health services and policy researcher at the George Washington University, and his co-authors at the Ohio State University argue that if the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s 2019 proposed…
Study finds some state laws linked to lower incidence of vaping
State laws that regulate e-cigarette sales and usage may lower their use in states where those laws have been implemented, according to a new observational study from the University of Iowa published this week by the journal JAMA Network Open.
Most Young People Do Not Vape, and Even Fewer Vape Regularly
While youth vaping rates have increased in recent years, most middle and high school students don’t vape or smoke and very few vape or smoke daily, finds a study led by researchers at NYU School of Global Public Health.
Menthol Ban Could Increase Health Equity
Current policies that include restrictions on the sale of menthol flavored tobacco and nicotine products are less likely to reach those that would benefit from them the most, according to new research from the University of Kentucky’s College of Medicine.
Vaping not worth potential heart risk, researchers say
Science hasn’t yet caught up with electronic cigarettes, leaving health care providers and users with many unknowns. But a new review of the research so far finds growing evidence that vaping can harm the heart and blood vessels.
Cyp2F2-Mediated Lung Cancer, Rapid Risk Assessment of Color Additives, and More Featured in November 2019 Toxicological Sciences
Toxicological Sciences continues to deliver cutting-edge research in toxicology in the November 2019 issue. This issue features research on computational toxicology and databases, developmental and reproductive toxicology, and more.
GW Experts Are Available to Speak for Stories during Lung Cancer Awareness Month
WASHINGTON (Oct. 30, 2019) — November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month and according to the American Cancer Society, more than 220,000 new cases of lung cancer are diagnosed each year. The George Washington University (GW) Cancer Center has various experts…
The Association of American Cancer Institutes Launches Public Policy Resource Library
The AACI Public Policy Resource Library aims to enable cancer centers and partners in the cancer advocacy community to share resources to foster collaboration, promote cancer prevention, and spur the development of sound public health policy at the state and local level.
Rutgers study examines smoking status, health conditions in older Chinese American men
The findings of the study by the Rutgers Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research underscore the need for culturally targeted interventions to prevent and reduce tobacco use, manage chronic disease and screen for lung cancer.
Juul leans into regulatory expertise with new CEO hire
CORNELL UNIVERSITY MEDIA RELATIONS OFFICESeptember 25, 2019 Juul leans into regulatory expertise with new CEO hire On Wednesday, vaping firm Juul announced it was replacing its chief executive, Kevin Burns, with KC Crosthwaite, formerly with tobacco giant Altria. The replacement…
Smoking abstinence has little impact on the motivation for food
It’s sometimes thought that smokers who can’t light up are likely to reach for food in lieu of cigarettes. But new research from the University at Buffalo suggests that smoking abstinence doesn’t greatly affect the motivation for food.
The study, published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence, used cues and actual money to learn how much smokers might spend for cigarettes, food and water during abstinence. The results provide new insights for how different systems control motivation and reward.
Teens falling victim to the Juul effect
“We were seeing a real drop-off in youth smoking, but now we’re seeing an increase,” says Dr. Beth Ebel, a UW Medicine pediatrician and researcher with the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center. Among teens as young as middle-school age, vaping with products that have nicotine “predisposes you to cigarette smoking later on.”
Nicotine, once derived from tobacco plants to kill insects, works by altering the nervous system. “We’ve used it, refined it, concentrated it, and now we have a pure form of one of the most addictive substances known,” Ebel says in downloadable video soundbites (2:22).