Africa is making tobacco control progress, but more can and should be done
Statement of Leonce Dieudonne SESSOU, Executive Secretary of the African Tobacco Control Alliance (ATCA) following the release of the WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic 2023 For immediate release Lomé, 25 September 2023 - The African Tobacco Control Alliance (ATCA) is pleased to see that countries of the WHO Afro region are improving their level...
Vaping may increase asthma risk for young users
Vaping, or the use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), among adolescents has grown dramatically over the past several years. Although e-cigarettes have fewer toxins than regular cigarettes, they still contain a mixture of harmful chemicals and raise the risk of respiratory diseases. For the new study, published in Preventive Medicine, the researchers analyzed data from a national...
FDA must crack down on retailers selling tobacco to teens: Report
A new government report finds that federal regulators need to do more to help in the battle to keep kids and teens off tobacco. Among the report's findings were that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration needs to get tough on retailers selling tobacco to youth and should improve its oversight of online retailers. The FDA should also...
Ministers set to ban single-use vapes in UK over child addiction fears
Government understood to have concluded the disposable nicotine products are mainly aimed at under-18s. Ministers are reportedly poised to ban single-use vapes, after a series of calls from councils, leading paediatricians and public waste campaigners to make selling the disposable devices illegal on health and environmental grounds. The move could come next week after the government...
Tobacco ban ignored near PH schools – study
TOBACCO and nicotine products sale and advertising still persist within the proximity of schools in the Philippines despite government regulations, a study shows. An observational study conducted by the Institute for Global Tobacco Control (IGTC) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health also finds that enforcement of the comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising,...
New smoking laws for South Africa – a job-killer in plain packaging
The Portfolio Committee on Health has conducted more public hearings on the new Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill, with participants expressing mixed views. The new Bill has been met with both support and vehement opposition, depending on the clauses being focused on. Broadly, the bill aims to introduce the following: Indoor public places...
New smoking laws for South Africa – battle over jobs and lost profits
Proponents and supporters of the raft of new smoking law for South Africa have reflected on the public feedback on the bill so far, alleging that fear-mongering and misinformation have taken root to manipulate the public into rejecting the bill. The new Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill is currently with the provinces...
Has countdown to #Smokefree Nollywood begun?
The recent convergence of movie practitioners on the auspices of Nollywood in Abuja to discuss the dangers of smoking in movies, is indicative that the Nigerian movie industry is now grasping the reality of the threat smoking in films pose to children and the uninformed. While the National Tobacco Control Act of 2015 and...
Senators Now Want E-Cigarettes, Sheesha Outlawed In Kenya
Senators are now pushing for a ban on electronic cigarettes or strict regulations on the use of the substance. In a motion tabled by Nominated Senator Catherine Mumma, the senators raised concerns over abuse of nicotine and the increasing usage of e-cigarettes by underage users mostly students in primary and secondary schools. The Senate wants the...
The “Kwit” app to stop smoking is the first to be recognized by the WHO
The “Kwit” mobile application has just been validated by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one way among others to quit smoking. More than three million people have downloaded it around the world. The principle of “Kwit”? Stimulation and motivation based on game mechanics to avoid returning to cigarettes. Stop smoking before giving in...
