Posted on 05/21/2002 8:31:59 AM PDT by SheLion
ATLANTA, May 21 /PRNewswire/ -- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today unveiled new television public service announcements starring and directed by Esai Morales of "NYPD Blue" and PBS' "American Family." The PSAs are part of a CDC initiative aimed at decreasing tobacco use, especially in the Hispanic community.
"Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths among Hispanics, therefore the tragic consequences of smoking are felt widely in the Hispanic community," said Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson. "We are excited that Mr. Morales will be joining the effort to reduce the number of lives adversely affected by smoking-related illness and disability."
The PSAs are based on Morales' personal experience as the child of a smoker. They chronicle how, as a young boy, he would hide cigarettes from his mother hoping to convince her to quit smoking. The 30- and 60-second spots are presented in both English and Spanish, and will be made available to English and Spanish television stations this summer.
"I'm proud of these PSAs and I'm honored to help the Hispanic community on this issue," said Morales. "Smoking and smoking-related illness have a devastating effect on all of us, especially our children. I look forward to using my visibility to help more families like mine quit smoking." Morales will communicate his tobacco prevention and health messages through media interviews and personal appearances. In addition to the PSAs, Morales will appear on educational posters for the campaign.
Smoking is responsible for 87 percent of the lung cancer deaths in the United States. In 1997, 20.4 percent of Hispanic adults smoked cigarettes. In addition, CDC has found that babies and children who are exposed to tobacco smoke have more ear infections and asthma and higher death rates from SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), and that mothers who smoke during pregnancy are more likely to have low-birth-weight babies. Smoking is the leading preventable cause of premature death in the United States, killing an estimated 440,000 Americans each year.
Esai Morales is a familiar face on both the large and small screens. He currently stars as Lieutenant Tony Rodriguez on ABC's "NYPD Blue," and also has recurring roles on PBS' "American Family" and Showtime's "Resurrection Boulevard." Morales began his film career in 1983 in the prison drama "Bad Boys" with Sean Penn, and was propelled to fame in 1987 with "La Bamba." He co-starred with Jimmy Smits and Edward James Olmos in Gregory Nava's "My Family/Mi Familia" in 1995. Morales grew up in New York City, where he spoke only Spanish until the age of 5. He has worked with a number of causes over the course of his career, including co-founding the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts, which works to improve the opportunity and image of Hispanics in front of as well as behind the camera.
In conjunction with these PSAs, CDC has posted information about tobacco prevention for the Hispanic community in English and Spanish on their Web site, www.cdc.gov/tobacco .
For further information about viewing or airing the PSA or obtaining posters, please contact the Media Campaign Resource Center (MCRC) at MCRC@cdc.gov or (770) 488-5705, ext. 2. For information on tobacco prevention in English or Spanish, please call (800) CDC-1311.
CDC protects people's health and safety by preventing and controlling diseases and injuries; enhances health decisions by providing credible information on critical health issues; and promotes healthy living through strong partnerships with local, national and international organizations.
I know he means well, but the anti smokers grab onto him, and he is now turning against a potential 55,000 million fan base.
I know "I" do not like him anymore. Must be a liberal.
Now he is throwing out that magic number of 440,000 Americans dying a year......well, what is it! 440,000 or 53,000 or 52,000. None of them can ever get this figure correct. Why? Because there IS no correct figure.
Morales will appear on educational posters for the campaign.
He better appear NUDE. That's the ONLY way I would look at him now. Not even sure if THAT would help.
Just like Ba Ba Streisand. Being the DemocRAT that she is, I can't stand to look at her anymore. I threw away the two CD's I had of her.
I figure "they turn on me, why should "I" support them anymore." No way!
I hate it when our favorite people get political. If they want to be a star, keep quiet about politics. If they want to run for office, get out of the theater.
Wasn't too long ago I read an article about smoking killing more blacks. They get their teeth into something, they won't let go.
Is that 55 billion? Pretty big for someone who's biggest roll was as Ritchie Valens' brother.
That's great that you quit. Good for you!
I don't choose to quit. I choose to smoke. And no, can't say I ever came across anyone who coughed up that kind of stuff.
Must have had a terrible cold. Not sure what all could have contributed to that condition. What else did the person do besides smoke? Did they work around asbestos. Maybe they worked in a coal mine. Black lung causes that you know.
Farmers who smoke and don't smoke here are always wheezing and coughing, especially during harvest when the dust really flies. They started wearing masks, thank God.
I've never known a person who just smokes coughing up stuff like that. There must have been other ingredients in his life style that is combined with this. Unless the person was in their 80's???
It's really crazy the way life works: I lost my Grandmother at 44, filled with cancer, never smoked a day in her life.
My other Grandmother died from old age at 86, smoked three packs of non filtered Camels for many, many years.
I think when "they" cure death, I might give up smoking.
I like her a lot to watch her on NYPD. Just never got into her "real" life. hmmmm no kidding!
The lifetime risk of a smoker dying of lung cancer is approximately 5%. The average number of pack years at which smokers get lung cancer is 56.7 years for men and 37.4 years for women.
On these figures 20.4% x 5% = 1.02% of Hispanics will get lung cancer and it'll take them between 37 and 56 years to get it.
In other words, 98.98% of Hispanic smokers will die from a cause other than lung cancer. Wow! What an epidemic!
Wrong!! They've found the cause of SIDS, and it ain't nothin' to do with smoking.
Researchers Study E.Coli Byproduct
100% association! Now, that's what I call cause and effect!
Don't worry, in about a year or two the mainstream press dunderheads will get the message. Then, SIDS will quietly slip off the "smoking causes" radar screen, just like cervical cancer (caused by HPV), stomach ulcers (caused by Helicobactor pylori), etc.
Also, smoking is down, but asthma is up. Yet, they are still telling everyone that smoking aggravates asthma. It's not true. They will have to sing a new song here pretty soon.
Thanks again!
Your pretty smart! Yet, the way they twist it around, the general public wouldn't take time to figure this out like you did. They just take this at face value.
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