COLCHESTER, Vt. (AP) — Eating healthy can start in the checkout line. So Vermont officials are making a pitch to retailers in hopes of getting consumers to eat healthier food and avoid tobacco and alcohol. On Wednesday, the state Department of Health is holding a conference to launch its “Healthy Retailers” campaign, a training session involving 75 community health advocates. As part of it, store owners will be offered free point-of-sale materials including posters that show people involved in healthy activities. Dr. Harry Chen, the state health commissioner, says point-of-sale a ... Jump to full article >>

House lawmakers voted unanimously last night to ban welfare recipients from spending their cash benefits on alcohol, tobacco, and lottery tickets, reigniting an issue that flared during Governor Deval Patrick’s reelection campaign last year. The House approved the ban, as part of a larger amendment to the state budget, on a 155-0 vote. The measure not only targets welfare recipients, it also bans store owners from accepting welfare debit cards for purchases of alcohol, tobacco, and lottery tickets. Store owners who violate the ban could be fined $500 for the first offense, and more than $1,0 ... Jump to full article >>

WASHINGTON — Andrew Traver, nominated to lead the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), faces a powerful foe on the road to Senate approval. Traver, 47, praised for his work against the Chicago area’s street gangs, has led the ATF in Illinois since 2004. Obama nominated him in November, eliciting strong opposition from the National Rifle Association, which called him hostile to the Second Amendment. It urged the president to withdraw the nomination. Traver “has been deeply aligned with gun-control advocates and anti-gun activities,” Chris Cox, w ... Jump to full article >>

YAKIMA, Wash. — Federal agents have raided a cigarette maker on the Yakama Indian Reservation, one day after the company sued Washington state alleging violations of the tribe’s 1855 treaty. A lawyer for King Mountain tobacco confirmed Wednesday’s raid but otherwise declined to comment. A copy of the search warrant, signed by federal Magistrate James Hutton, was anonymously faxed to the Yakima Herald-Republic newspaper. Hutton gave agents permission to seize company records and computer equipment, but an affidavit explaining the purpose of the raid was not included. The FBI and t ... Jump to full article >>

A Butte man faces charges of driving drunk and crashing his vehicle into a local business. Brandon Womboldt, 18, was taken into custody Friday evening, Police Captain Doug Conway said. He also faces possible charges of criminal endangerment and reckless driving. Police and emergency crews responded to a report of an accident at Gilligan’s Tobacco Shop on East Front Street just before 10 p.m. Friday. On Monday the damage to the building was boarded up. Womboldt is accused of driving a Chevy pickup truck while under the influence of alcohol and slamming into the back of the building. Conw ... Jump to full article >>

Suriname on Thursday devalued its local currency by 16.4 percent and announced tax raises on alcohol, tobacco, gasoline and basic services as the government sought to offset the impact of payments of overdue public worker salaries. Suriname’s central bank late on Wednesday said it would devalue the official exchange rate to 3.35 Suriname dollars to the U.S. dollar from the previous rate of 2.80 Suriname dollars. The measure came into effect on Thursday. The government recently announced it would pay long overdue public worker salaries, raising concern over the impact on the local economy ... Jump to full article >>

LONDON — Alcohol is more dangerous than illegal drugs like heroin and crack cocaine, according to a new study. British experts evaluated substances including alcohol, cocaine, heroin, ecstasy and marijuana, ranking them based on how destructive they are to the individual who takes them and to society as a whole. Researchers analyzed how addictive a drug is and how it harms the human body, in addition to other criteria like environmental damage caused by the drug, its role in breaking up families and its economic costs, such as health care, social services, and prison. Heroin, crack cocaine ... Jump to full article >>

One in four cases of bowel cancer could be prevented if people drank less alcohol, cut down on red meat and took more exercise. Watching waist size and stopping smoking are also important ways of avoiding one of Britain’s biggest killers, claim researchers. They identified five lifestyle changes that could cut the risk of bowel cancer by 23 per cent, and some other cancers. A study published today in the British Medical Journal looked at alcohol intake, smoking, waist circumference, diet and exercise. The research shows that taking up just one of the healthy lifestyle recommendations could ... Jump to full article >>

San Francisco supervisors today gave final approval to expand the city’s ban on tobacco sales at stores with pharmacies but postponed a vote on overturning a mayoral veto of a fee on alcohol wholesalers. An expansion of the city’s ban on tobacco sales at stores with pharmacies–which would include grocery and big-box stores such as Safeway, Lucky and Costco–was approved at a second board vote this afternoon, and Mayor Gavin Newsom’s office indicated the mayor will sign it. Supporters have said that cigarette sales at stores that also sell medicines sends a mixed me ... Jump to full article >>

German researchers have linked headaches in high-school students to smoking and use of alcohol. Researchers at Ludwig-Maximilians-University in Munich also found coffee drinking and physical inactivity associated specifically with teen migraines. “Our study confirms, adolescents with any type of headache might benefit from regular physical activity and low consumption of alcoholic drinks,” study leader Dr. Astrid Milde-Busch said in a statement. “In teens suffering from migraine a low coffee consumption should also be suggested.” Milde-Busch and colleagues asked 1,260 ... Jump to full article >>

The latest Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) figure of 3.7pc prolongs the pain for savers, who will find the real value of their savings erodes fast if they cannot find accounts paying rates to match the inflation increase. Basic-rate tax payers will need to find an account paying 4.625pc to maintain the spending power of their cash and they have a choice of 20 accounts to break even, while only one account is available to higher rate tax payers. However, the 20 accounts on the market that do beat inflation are only likely to be suitable for a small proportion of savers. To qualify for these acco ... Jump to full article >>