Smoking Habit and Psoriasis

Smoking is an independent risk factor for psoriasis, with particularly strong associations for heavy smokers and those who have smoked for many years, according to research published in the March 1 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology. To determine whether there was an association between psoriasis and smoking, Wenqing Li, Ph.D., of Harvard Medical School in Boston, and colleagues looked at data for 2,410 adults with incident psoriasis who were identified among 185,836 participants from three study cohorts. The researchers found that past and current smokers had an increased relative risk (RR) of incident psoriasis compared with never smokers (1.39 and 1.94, respectively). For current smokers, there was an increasing risk for more cigarettes smoked per day (RRs for one to 14, 15 to 24, and 25 or more cigarettes/day: 1.81, 2.04, and 2.29, respectively).

Indoor Smoking Ban, Russia News

Russia is due to ban smoking in all enclosed spaces in an effort to stamp out the habit that kills up to 500,000 people every year, the health ministry said. "All disagreements between ministries over the ban have been resolved," a ministry spokesperson said. The bill is still subject to approval by the parliament. The World Health Organization (WHO) welcomed the bill, describing it as a "breakthrough" for Russia.

Birmingham Smoking Ban Supported

Alabama's Secretary of State, Beth Chapman, was among dozens who spoke about Birmingham's smoking ban, Tuesday. People filled the city council chamber to voice their opinions, heavy hitters and average citizens alike. The measure passed unanimously, with amendments. While the majority of attendees stood up to show their support for putting out cigarettes in public places, several had major issues with the plan.

Tobacco Imports Increased in Saudi Arabia

The heavy custom fees levied on tobacco did not reduce its imports which rose by about 57 percent last year compared to 2009 , business daily Al-Eqtisadiah reported Friday quoting a statistical report issued by the customs department. According to the report, Saudi Arabia imported 57,838 tons of tobacco in 2011 valued at SR3.3 billion compared to the imports of 2009 which reached SR2.104 billion. Abdullah Al-Salman, member of the welfare committee to combat smoking, said this quantity was considered to be extremely large because the taxes on imports of tobacco were still low. “These taxes should be increased because the proceeds will be used to treat diseases caused by smoking,” he said.

Cigarettes Packagings, Tobacco Companies Rights

Registering a trademark gives the owner the right to exclude others from using it, but not the guaranteed future right to use it themselves, the federal government argues in its submission on the landmark plain packaging High Court case, lodged last night. In world-first legislation, the Gillard government is requiring that all cigarette packaging be drab green, with graphic health warnings. Cigarette companies, led by British American Tobacco Australia, are challenging the constitutional validity of the legislation, on the grounds that it acquires their intellectual property and trademarks without compensation. The government's case says this claim is not sustainable, because ''what an owner gains by registration of a trademark is … no more than a monopoly right to exclude others from using the mark without the owner's authority''.