Tobacco Documents Online

0r '-~1~4Ai, 1 '-~ a•[ eef3 t~~~~~~ ~z 4t ( a.e 4~ a34 Fa+JC3~7~~!~ Si5?~:~SS~C~U4 2,i~ t i 1 1~ .. ~ a tt ls c a'L"r.. { t'Ctt ~Z~~3~ dtFi~iOi c~ Jfl~ `IL";~j°tri d1iF Q'?f _c1 «X21jr ~~2 SIt`~ ?[}. ' ~ *u~9. ~ '&~ i? K *.u 2f.Y ~ . ;~. o OPENING STATEr1EIVT OF~ SENATOR' EDNIARD M'. KENNEDY AT, A HEARIN G ON DETERR,ING CHILDF100D' SPtOKIiN?G ° E3~;,iLs oc st.Gr.' ., (f3 ~C 2?9~.3T>'r5T t ~:ff 5,w.^~~T~,b~: ~ f se~ ;~For Immedi'ate Release ~ sLso:ra~.Pr"°i rx rtc ~~',ltax 25 , 1978 ~; y >rt~~'odayAthe Subcar~inittee on Health'and Scientific Research opens hearings'on,.S.-3115, the National Disease Prevention and Health- Promoti'on AcCof 1197&, which I-introduced last week with the cosponsor- ship of several of my colleagues. •This legislation proposes a series "of programs which would provide our nation for the first time i'n its history with alcomprehenssve strategy for the prevention of disease and the promotion of health among our citizens. Today's session focuses on the provisions of S. 31151which relaite to cigarette smoking, and particularly, onprovisions for.deterring smoking among , °uryc~hildren~~Hv" ° an T^T cl: rw c es1 i~ ~o 1< ` ...i.. -.'v r Gl Over the years this Subcommittee has heard testimony on hundreds of healthiissues, but none has more personal relevance to me, or'disturbs me more deeply, than the topic on which we focus today. Millions ofparents in this country'-r and I count myself among them -- „- wish for one thing,above all others:.They hope that their children's pliysical health will permit them to realiz8 their-ful'l potential-as' human beings ..y` "'For many'American parents and for m~any of our children, those hopes may never be realized. They are endangexed not by war or by disease,but by anepidemic of another sort. _. =From 1963,t01974, there was an eightfold increase in the ' nvmberofi 12 to 14'year old gi:rls who smoke cigarettes. During that .. =`time,=the number of girls aged!15 and 16 who smoke more than doubled.- Among teenage girls who smoke„ the percentage consuming more than a-r; !?pack of cigarettes•a day has tripTed.-.,FortunateTy, the percentage of teenage boys who smoke has stayed more or less_unchanged --.but at aa disturbing 31 pJercent ~ Unless they find the inner strengthto quit, many of these ,young people will die prematurely, anditheir declining years will be ' marred by chronic, debilitating disease. On average, the earlier they start smoking, the shorter their li'ves wi1T be. If they begin at age 16, and smoke alpack a day„ they will die an average six years earlier " than their non-smoking friend's. They will suffer more cancer of the lung, mouth, throat,, bladder and pancreas. They will contract more emphysema, bronchitis and vascular disease. They will have more heart attacks and more ulcers. Our society is watching the makings of a health care catasttroph, We are watching our children mortgage their health to a habit which has no redeeming,soci!al value other than the income ilt generates for a very small proportion of'our people. =>'In the legislation we introduced last Jeek, there are a number mf' provi'sions aimed at discouraging adUts from smoking or encouraging them to use cigarettes which are less hazardous. Such gragrams are ~

4 .impor:tant, but the real pI'ace to start is at the beginning. Deterring children from smoking must be our highest priority in dealing with t= ;,;r cigarette smoking in this country. .,„ , It wi11 be argued that cigarette,smoking is nottruly hazardous ` to health,`°that'the data is not conclusive, that other environmental ~: or occupational hazards e.rplai'n the irrefutable increase ia d'eath and disability'amcng smokers. In 1976, this Subcommittee heard extensive testimony on the scientific issues involived in the smoking debate. We heard from three nobel laureates at that time, and a fourth has submitted his v'iews for this hearing. I think one of these distinguishe gentlemen, Dr.__Renato Dulbecco, accurately summarized the bulk of thils testimony when he said: "I'hav'e carefully' reviewed all of the available evidence andlam fully convinced that cigarette smoking is ` the cause of 90 percent of lung cancer.' Doubts have_been raised from time to time but have no scientific validity...".. ~4 , ~x It`will aliso be argued that re ardless of t'~e evidence .-3concerning' `the, healthihazards of cigarettes,, smo?cir_g,~ is a parental probl'em.'-`?The federal government,_some wi1l.,say„ has no role in discouraging cigarette smoking among children. I am the first to agree that the smoking habits of children nsare'primaril'y' the responsibility of their: par:ents, but I sti11' see a; {,: , clear role"for:gouernment in helping those'parents'who wish to keep .~~ ; °;their~;children' from smoking. `:'First, t:ie' government' helps in count'Tessi ' other ways to" protect the health of chi'ldren:;•` we put fences along =to,~ raiSroad traclts and the sides of bri'dges:• ~iYe require childproof liids •~ . for drug containers ~We provide food for'those:wi~th no other resources.' Secondly, the•federa2 gover.mentrhas the obligation to make~;~ certain that parents and children receive a fair an3 full.picture of the hazards of cigarette smoki~ng,. As long as-the tobacco industry , spends over $400 million a year advertising its product, there is a:nple justification for government.involveisent in balancing,the,,;,-~ informational scale r ~~ ', .-„ , . : - . . ... , - " . ,. •. .. . .F Today`we wi 11 explore the " phenomenon of childhood •smoksng„_and we wiLl'examine some potential strategies for deal'ing,with it. I1 am-;•_ confident that wiith the help of the kind of witnesses we will hear, from today, we can organize effective, acceptable and non=coErcive programs for blunting the epidemic of childhood smoking in this country}^ilo: Vt1< 1"r1~'js Ei 3r ~~~ t SCI Ifs?J ~`~ : Z`J~G~tp Before proceed'ing,-I`wouZd like'to express my regret that the tobacco industry was unable to provide aiwitness to represent its point of view at this morning's hearing.";'PT.heniS. 3115 was introd'uced, six d'ays ago, we invited the Tobacco Institute and several tobacco ;~ _,companies to appear at this sessi'on" .They informed us".that this was'-; not sufficient warning;"and that they_could not find a:singl's indivridual from the Institute or from anyy of 'the companies who could' appear ~ J,, . today. ~,I would only point out that ar.iong the witnesses we have with_,, , us today are several.who were not told until three or four-days aga .. ' ,that we wanted them to attend - r s. : tJZi `3`1'E r3V ~ x rr ~ c.:l~4 e wO r .''cr l r;Y r '4 ~t3 9it ~~r' ~ .~ 7'~f~~ - . : ~ ~,*V x:,i it~ r. fIC~ ~~,}r .. ,r Q.e~3ti ~ . u W . .~,y., 3~Y` ~ct~ilk• x ~ t-T nv .[ ? ` T srs f~ Jz~k~~ c~i; tAY~,r' z~ ~z , a asr,'. :'Y n 5ei' r "[ra~"2' -a :i.