MDQuit News Archives - April, 2010
FDA Reviews Menthol - April 5,
2010
A committee is investigating
the potentially harmful effects of menthol in tobacco products, so that
it can advise the FDA. While a ban seems
unlikely, it is expected that the FDA will administer some guidelines
for the
use of menthol in cigarettes. Read more here.
Nicotine Levels While Smoking a Cigarette - April 5,
2010
Researchers
at Duke University Medical
Center found that
nicotine gradually accumulates in an individuals brain during the course
of
smoking a cigarette, contradicting the belief that a spike of nicotine
in the
brain is caused every time a cigarette is puffed. Read more here.
More Rapid Relief of Withdrawal Symptoms - April 5,
2010
Researchers
are working on developing a nicotine vapor delivery system to aid
individuals
in smoking cessation. The new therapy would allow nicotine to reach the
bloodstream much faster than current cessation aids, relieving
withdrawal
symptoms almost immediately. Read more here.
Past Smoking May Impair Women's Brains More Than Drinking -
April 5,
2010
A
recent study found that women who had ever smoked more than 20
cigarettes a day
scored lower on tests for reasoning, planning, and organization compared
to
non-smokers. Read more here.
Questionable Advertising - April 5,
2010
Camel
recently ran an add in magazines such as Glamour,
Vogue, and Cosmopolitan that
appears to target teenage girls, offering promotions such as lip balm,
cell
phone jewelry, and wristbands. A recent study also found that the amount
of
teenage girls which chose Camel as their favorite brand of cigarette
doubled
after the campaign release. Read more here.
Do You Have the Cancer Gene? -
April 5,
2010
A recent study found a gene which causes some smokers to be much more
susceptible to lung cancer. If a smoker did not possess the gene the
risk of
developing cancer correlated with the number of packs smoked a day;
whereas,
the people who possessed the gene had a very high risk even if they were
only
light smokers. Read more here.
Snus On the Rise - April 5,
2010
Altria,
the owners of Phillip Morris USA, announced their plan to take Marlboro
snus, a
smokeless tobacco product, nationwide by the end of March. Many
cigarette
companies are investigating alternative products such as snus because of
declining
smoking rates in recent years. Read more here.
Correlates Link Smoking and Cancer in a Meta-analysis -
April 5,
2010
A
recent meta-analysis found a relationship between the development of
prostate
cancer in men and smoking. Smokers are estimated to have a 30% greater
risk of
developing and dying from prostate cancer than non-smokers. Read more here.
Nicotine Vaccine To Be Produced - April 5,
2010
Nabi
Pharmaceuticals announced their agreement with GlaxoSmithKline for the
license
and option of NicVax, a smoking vaccine. The goal of the vaccine is to
allow
people to quit and not relapse back into smoking through the use of
antibodies.
Read more here.
