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Towson University will go Smoke-Free! (11/16/09)

Last week Towson became one of the first Maryland 4-year colleges to adopt a campus wide no smoking policy, which will be implemented August 2010. The ban seeks to provide a cleaner, healthier campus and students are hoping other 4-year institutes follow their lead. Read more here.

Hopkins Kicks Butt (HKB) is working to institute a campus-wide smoking ban (11/2/09)

The Johns Hopkins STOPS coalition, Hopkins Kicks Butt, is advocating that their campus institute a smoking ban. "Establishing a smoke-free campus will set a positive standard for other similar institutions and will reaffirm the Johns Hopkins University's reputation as a center of innovation and commitment to the common good," the proposal said. Read more here.

The American Cancer Society's Great American Smokeout is Thursday, November 19, 2009. Thanks to the STOPS coalitions that listed their events on our page. Please post pictures from your event to share with the other coalitions!

American Legacy Foundation is accepting applications for Youth Activism Fellowship funding. Hurry! The deadline is November 30, 2009.

If you think your group could benefit from more funding, please check out Legacy's Youth Activism Fellowship, which provides an opportunity for young adults to build leadership in the tobacco control movement through training, coaching, peer to peer networking, and direct action. Young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 with a strong commitment to youth activism and organizing are invited to apply. Eligible candidates must demonstrate a commitment to promoting healthy communities through tobacco prevention and control or an emerging interest in tobacco control and prevention at the local, state, regional and/or national levels.

Requirements

- Complete an 18-month term of service (January 2010 - June 2011)

- Attend mandatory trainings and events in Washington, DC and other locations (Travel, lodging and meals to be paid by Legacy) In-person meetings range from 3-4 days at a time. (example: Thursday-Sunday). Meetings will be held January 2010, July 2010, January 2011, and June 2011.

- Actively engage in a local, state, or national advocacy effort focused on tobacco control and prevention

- Contribute to a group project designed to benefit the national movement of tobacco prevention and control

- Complete program assignments and reporting requirements

- Participate in regular conference calls and all in-person meetings.

Webcasts & Powerpoint presentations from the 5th National Summit on Smokeless and Spit Tobacco: New Products, New Challenges and a New Generation of Advocacy should be available on their website soon.

The 5th National Summit on Smokeless and Spit Tobacco is a national conference for professionals and advocates working in the field of smokeless tobacco use prevention and cessation. They seek to raise awareness of the dangers of smokeless tobacco products and to broaden the national coalition of organizations, agencies and individuals committed to reducing the use of smokeless and spit tobacco products. Youth advocacy events were a feature of the 2009 summit, and there was be a strong focus on issues of concern to those who work with youth. Participants learned about the latest research in the field, and shared strategies that have proven effective and successful in the fight against smokeless tobacco. Webcasts of plenary sessions, as well as Powerpoint presentations of all the sessions should be available soon here.

Say What? Smoking is one of 8 ways to lose hearing (10/9/09)

Smoking cigarettes minimizes blood flow to the ear. A lifetime of smoking deteriorates hearing significantly. Read more here.

Do Text Messages Help Smokers Quit? (10/8/09)

A new study is testing how motivational and therapeutical text messages to your mobile device may help ease the strain of smoking cessation by providing encouragement as well as suggestions for cravings. For more information, click here.

Tobacco exposure in unborn babies may increase risk of psychotic symptoms in later adolescence (10/1/09)

Researchers have found a "dose-response" effect in relation to the amount of tobacco smoked by a mother while carrying an unborn child and the child's risk of developing psychotic symptoms in adolescence. Read more here.

Flavored cigarettes are now banned! (9/22/09)...but flavored cigars are not.

As stated in the new regulations under the "Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, the new ban on candy and fruit flavored cigarettes was enacted on September 22, 2009. The act states:

"a cigarette or any of its component parts (including the tobacco, filter, or paper) shall not contain, as a constituent (including a smoke constituent) or additive, an artificial or natural flavor (other than tobacco or menthol) or an herb or spice, including strawberry, grape, orange, clove, cinnamon, pineapple, vanilla, coconut, licorice, cocoa, chocolate, cherry, or coffee, that is a characterizing flavor of the tobacco product or tobacco smoke"

The regulation also states that the FDA is continuing to examine restrictions placed on menthol cigarettes as well as flavored tobacco products that are not cigarettes, such as flavored cigars which are still VERY popular among youth.

Just a few whiffs of tobacco smoke can harm the heart (9/1/09)

This study reports that even the smoke from LESS THAN ONE cigarette (the equivalent to that of second hand smoke) can increase your chances of death by cardiovascular disease by 20%. Read more here.

Breaking Up is Hard to Do- Especially With Your Cigarette (8/28/09)

The challenges of quitting smoking can be similar to ending a relationship. Smoking IS an addictive relationship between the smoker and the cigarette. Even President Obama has admitted to struggling with smoking addiction. Even very accomplished people struggle with addiction. Some innovative methods to quitting smoking inlcude 1) having the "break up" conversation with the cigarette; 2) associating smoking cessation with a certain color (such as red); and 3) anti-smoking medications that change how you taste cigarettes. Read more here.

Neuroticism linked to Smoking (8/20/09)

Why do worriers die younger? Neuroticism is a personality triat that is linked with high anxiety and sensitivity to stressful situations. Some of that anxiety can be relaxed and dulled by smoking. A recent study reported that at least 40 percent of increased mortality rates for people who are considered highly neurotic can be attributed to smoking. Read more here.

FDA releases statement about the safety of E-Cigarettes (7/22/09)

The Food and Drug Administration has issued a statement to healthcare professionals and consumers that electronic cigarettes ("e-cigarettes") contain detectable levels of carcinogens and toxic chemicals, such as diethelyne glycol, an ingredient found in anti-freeze. Since e-cigarettes are not regulated by the FDA, they do no contain health warnings. Consumers can report side-effects of e-cigarettes online here.

Smoking ban for military recommended (7/13/09)

A new study commissioned by the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs recommends phasing out all tobacco sales and use over a 5 or 10 year period, citing impaired military readiness in the short term and increased cancer risk in the long term as consequences of tobacco use. Read more here.

Chemicals in tobacco smoke may cause brain damage (7/6/09)

Researchers from the Indian National Brain Research Center have found that the compound NNK, found in tobacco smoke, may result in neuroinflammation when introduced to the brain. This inflammation may provoke a reaction from the immune system that results in the brain damage. More about this research can be found here.

Understand the main provisions of FDA regulation of tobacco products! (7/2/09)

The main provisions of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which was signed in to law by President Obama on June 22, 2009, allows the FDA to create a Center for Tobacco Products that will be able to set tobacco standards, require tobacco companies to disclose all ingredients in their products, approve claims of reduced harm such as "mild" or "light", require warning labels, prohibit the use of flavoring additives (except menthol) and require tobacco companies to disclose all research on the marketing and the effects of tobacco products. More information can be found in the June 29th edition of CESAR Fax here.

Tobacco companies target "social smokers" (6/17/09)

Tobacco companies are aware that there are many people who occasionally smoke cigarettes and may not be addicted to nicotine. It is challenging to reach these smokers with traditional interventions and counter-marketing strategies, since they do not consider themselves smokers. For more information, click here.

Study links cigarette changes to rising lung cancer (5/18/09)

A recent study investigates changing trends in the type of lung cancer that affects smokers. Smokers formerly presented with lung cancer mainly in large air tubes, and was most commonly "squamous cell carcinoma." Recently, doctors have noticed a jump in "adenocarcinoma", which grows in small air sacs far deeper in the lung. Some studies have attributed this change in cancer type to the introduction of filtered, lower-tar cigarettes. Smokers who switched to these lower-tar cigarettes began inhaling more deeply to get nicotine, pushing cancer-causing smoke deeper than before. This study investigates whether there is a link between the change in cigarettes and the increase in adenocarcinoma.

Sample Tobacco Programs Across the Country (5/3/09)

The Bacchus network and TobaccofreeU.org have put together a document of different activities conducted on college campuses around the country. Some examples are "Kick It to Get Kissed" at University of Montana - Missoula for Valentine's Day prevention and cessation, and "First Annual Puppy Petting Event" hosted by Fort Lewis Collegein Durango, Colorado. For more information about these and other creative events, click here.

If we had $1 million...we'd be rich! (4/17/09)

Many groups who work with tobacco prevention and cessation at the college level are experiencing budget cuts. At the STOPS meeting on 4/17/09 the attendees brainstormed how they would use $1 million dollars in funding to promote smoking cessation and awareness on their campuses. Here are some of the ideas they came up with:

1) Hiring famous people - such as Johnny Depp - to participate in media campaigns and public service announcements (PSA's)

2) Creating documentaries related to college smoking

3) Hiring tobacco specialists for their campuses

4) Offering FREE resources such as nicotine replacement therapy (NRT; patches, gum, etc.) to students and employees who want to quit

What would YOU do on your campus if you had $1 million in funding for your tobacco coalition?

Hookah Bar opens near UMBC (4/8/09)

There have been mixed feelings about a new hookah bar opening up close to the UMBC campus. According to this news report, a recent business survey of UMBC students revealed that there was a market for a local hookah bar. For more information, click here.

Controversy over new nicotine replacement product: E-Cigarettes (3/13/09)

New electronic cigarettes that look just like cigarettes, but do not contain the harmful products that cigarettes do, are eliciting controversy. These e-cigarettes run on a battery. E-cigarettes are inhaled, as a typical cigarette would be. When inhaled, the battery warms liquid nicotine stored in a plastic filter. The combination of heat and liquid creates the vapor or "smoke" puff when exhaled. The FDA is currently evaluating the product's safety. For more information, click here.

Little Cigar Use on the Rise (2/20/09)

Legacy has released a new report about the rise of little cigars. They report that from 1997 to 2007 the use of both little cigars and cigarillos have increased, while the overall use of cigarettes had decreased. Click here to see full report.

Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids releases new report on Big Tobacco's targeting of women and girls (2/18/09)

A new report highlights new marketing campaigns by tobacco companies that specifically target women and young girls, which include "light" and "low tar" cigarettes and Camel #9s. Click here to see the full report.

TODAY Show on NBC partners with Legacy to feature information on quitting smoking (1/29/09)

The Today Show with Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieria featured a special segment on January 29th and 30th about helping smokers quit. Cheryl Healton, president and CEO of the American Legacy foundation, appeared on the show to discuss the importance of quitting smoking.