Posted on 06/21/2002 1:49:28 PM PDT by SheLion
The tobacco companies, under siege from individual smokers, state attorneys general, and elected officials seeking ways to raise revenues, have long argued that links between cigarette smoking and disease were supposed by science, but not supported.
That argument ends now.
As a result of the world's first comprehensive evaluation of smoking research since 1986, and undoubtedly the most thorough, health experts have found that tobacco smoke is even more deadly than they had previously thought.
The research, conducted by 29 scientists from 12 countries, demonstrates that one-half of all persistent smokers (who number 1.2 billion people) will eventually be killed by a tobacco-caused disease. These include not just lung cancer, but also cancers of the stomach, liver, cervix and kidney, as well as myeloid leukemia.
Significantly, the study confirms the conclusions of U.S. scientists who have found that secondhand smoke can also cause cancer and other diseases.
Maine has taken previous scientific findings about the health effects of tobacco seriously. It has funded a persuasive media campaign to prevent teen-agers from picking up the habit. The state has also raised the cigarette tax, which has been the most effective way to keep young people from smoking. Finally, it has passed laws to reduce exposure to secondhand smoke by prohibiting cigarette smoking in most public places.
Now, however, it should tackle a more vexing problem - helping tobacco addicts quit. Because some adults have been able to kick the habit through the force of willpower alone, there's little public sympathy for those who are unable to do so. Instead of being seen as victims of a highly addictive and deadly drug, smokers who want to quit but cannot are seen as weak-willed and perhaps deserving of their fate.
That's simply wrong. As the new study suggests, smoking cessation programs will, over the next several decades, present the greatest opportunity to save lives and reduce disease. While it is best never to start smoking, effective cessation programs and addiction treatment will be needed to help many smokers stop. For many of them, it's a matter of life or death.
The propaganda nature of the thing is shown by the fact that they're doing all these press releases when they're not even having the study itself released till sometime in the fall/winter. They're doing it this way so that all sorts of inaccurate information will be spread on speculation about the contents of the study before the study itself is actually made available for analysis.
A good response when this is brought up for now might be to simply ask why, if the study has been done and shows what they claim, then why are they refusing to show the study itself to the public at this time.
(Not my words, but I couldn't have said it any better then this).
Smoking hasn't killed any of us in over 40-50 years, so what is so new? eh?
Tell me what is so new. Same old tired words from the health fanatics that do not like the smell of tobacco.
Different tricks to find a way to shoot us.
steve, you got THAT right! Just another excuse to really stick it to us, by the general public that knows no better.
They sure must be running scared to bring out this tired old report again. I have it on good authority that Maine is going to raise cigarette taxes again, so look for them to really hit us hard. They have to "justify" it, you know.........
The actual report isn't coming out until the fall, so why are the newspapers reporting it as fact already! Makes me burn.
And we're saying that in a Free republic it's nobody else's f***ing business what we do.
By the way, welcome to Free Republic. Your 30 day free trial at Homestead is up and your pictures don't show.
You don't live in a Free Republic. Haven't you figured that out yet?
Well, uh yes, that too. But what I meant was, they are long term.
Some of us have actually realized that life is full of risks, and haven't been paralyzed by fear over the fact.
Some of us choose quality over quantity and have decided that we would rather enjoy ourselves than live to be 110 years old, wringing our hands the entire way.
It's an attitude thing.
That is not what SheLion is saying and you know it, but there is risk in everything we do..... leave us to take our choice of risk, and we will leave you to yours.
Good Grief.
One of these days these ________ (fill in the blank)s are going to realize that most intelligent people could not care less what they have to say.
It is just unfortunate that the vast majority of the news media do not fall into the category of intelligent people.
Wouldn't you like to know WHICH studies they analyzed and which they didn't before you make up your mind how valuable this report may be? Why, I'll lay odds they didn't include their OWN ill-named MONICA study which contradicts this press release. Tell you what, you give me the same amount of money these guys spent on this alleged "study," allow me to choose the research I want to include in my conclusions, let me pick figures out of the air the same way they do, and I'll give you a meta-analysis that PROVES beyond a shadow of a doubt that smoking is GOOD for you. And it will be just as "honest" and rational as this piece of garbage.
FYI, tho, smokers know smoking is a risk and that's all it is. It is not a death sentence; it does not guarantee a horrible early death; it is less important as a risk factor than other things in life and it's our choice whether or not we want to take that risk. Oh, yeah, one more thing: not smoking does not guarantee a long, happy, healthy life any more than smoking guarantees an early death.
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