The Governor of Illinois Pat Quinn ratified a bill introduced by Republican Ronald Wait to outlaw possession of any type of tobacco products by minors younger than 18 years old. Ronald Wait, author of the law declared that the legislation was rather wise, because it has been illegal for a long period of time for any adolescent to buy tobacco products; however, they could get cigarettes by other means and possess them without any problems. That was the main reason for introducing the ban prohibiting possession and use of tobacco by minors. The latest anti-smoking law designates a multilevel sys ... Jump to full article >>

“Although health-wise, the law is good. For business owners – it’s difficult.” That’s why Richmond City Council President Kathy Graziano wasn’t surprised to learn that the owner of a restaurant in her district might be fighting the smoking ban and at the same time, keeping her business running. A sign on the door of Liberty Valance Restaurant on Forest Hill Avenue clearly reads: “We still allow smoking. Enter at your own risk.” Liberty Valance is one of several restaurants who seem to oppose the law. Some of the restaurants are posted on a Web si ... Jump to full article >>

Mechanical stress to alveolar walls may cause progressive damage after an early-life insult such as exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). This hypothesis was examined by using data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), a population-based cohort aged 45–84 years, free of clinical cardiovascular disease, recruited from 6 US sites in 2000–2002. The MESA-Lung Study assessed a fractal, structural measure of early emphysema (”alpha,” lower values indicate more emphysema) and a standard quantitative measure (”percent emphysema”) from cardiac comp ... Jump to full article >>

Did you know he loves cigars, golf — was born and raised in Alaska – -and his great grandmother was a sea otter? Ok — so he was born and raised in Ketchikan, Alaska (salmon capital of the world — he once hated salmon – -but now loves it, fresh and wild like he enjoys most things). His family goes back 10,000 years, coming to Alaska over the ice bridge on their way to Arizona for the winter. That makes him an Alaska Native (Athabascan variety). His grandfather came to Alaska in the 1890’s and his dad was mostly raised in an orphanage in Seward (wrote a book about those experiences � ... Jump to full article >>

Midnight Thursday, 31 December, ends not only the year 2009, but also the rights of cigarette smokers to light up indoors in public places. A number of “No Smoking” signs will need to be in place to inform the public, according to officials of the Cayman Islands Tourist Association. It is the responsibility of the businesses, vendors and public conveyances to have proper signs printed and posted prior to the deadline this week. If businesses choose to have an outdoor seating area that allows smoking in addition to a non-smoking area, the smoking area will need to be clearly marked and loca ... Jump to full article >>

Since January 2006, only bars equipped to allow smoking, or cigarette shops, were able to sell tobacco products, leading to newsagents suffering a loss of up to 90 per cent of their income and forcing around 4,000 of them across the country to shut down. But starting from Monday, December 28, people will now be able to buy loose tobacco or cigarettes at the same time as their newspapers. The Association of Press Vendors in the Comunidad de Madrid (AVECOMA) says the new legislation – known as the ‘omnibus law’ – will ‘end four years of discrimination’. [caption id="attachment_2898" ... Jump to full article >>

When France outlawed smoking in public places three years ago, residents took the news remarkably — almost shockingly — well. Almost overnight, cigarettes vanished from offices, restaurants, cafés and train stations as the French dutifully took their glowing butts outside — the only place where smoking was still permitted. But this being France, a backlash was almost certainly inevitable. According to a report released on Dec. 17 by an anti-smoking group, the initial obeisance of French smokers has now given way to people increasingly flaunting the law by lighting up indoors. The Non-Sm ... Jump to full article >>

Banning smoking in Conwell Park, which is being considered by the Casper City Council at the request of the Wyoming Medical Center, isn’t a very practical idea. For starters, such a ban would be difficult to enforce. Do we really want our police to spend time monitoring a public park to see if people are smoking, so they can hand out tickets? Wouldn’t we all be better off if they concentrated on real crimes? The hospital went smoke-free in July, which is appropriate for a facility that’s trying to keep its employees and patients healthy. Considering the known risks of smoking ... Jump to full article >>

A rare experiment to create an island free of cigarette smoking, cars and night lights has begun in Korea’s southern region. Aiming to provide its people with a nostalgic rest while protecting its natural environment, Jeung Island of Sinan County, South Jeolla province, is challenging itself to become the “Slow City” where there is no pollution. The island was designated in December 2007 by the International Slow Food Movement as a slow city. The 28.16 square-kilometer (10.87 square-mile) island with 857 households is already a popular tourist destination. This year alone, 250,000 touris ... Jump to full article >>

The war against tobacco industry and simple smokers has reached a new climax when officials introduced a measure to prohibit children adoption by people who smoke. Opponents already named the bill a huge violation of human rights. In conformity with the regulation currently pending in the Manchester City Council, smokers could be stripped of the possibility to adopt, foster or tutor any infant aged less than 2 years old.. Thus, according to the bill, local social services would have to reject adoption requests from families, where at least one member smokes. If such family is willing to adopt ... Jump to full article >>

In 2006 Massachusetts Department of Public Health adopted a pivotal measure in conformity with which Medicaid coverage for poor residents has been expanded to include smoking cessation program, to help them get rid of smoking habit. The regulation authors suggested that some day the program would pay off and contribute to decline in statewide smoking rates. Nevertheless, they didn’t even hope the program would bring such significant health benefits so soon. The newest data shows considerable drop in the statewide smoking rates among low-income residents across Massachusetts. Before the intro ... Jump to full article >>