Tobacco Documents Online

PREPARED FOR YOUR.INFORMATION'BY, THEINSTITUTE:STAFF' 1778,K'S,TREET', N'.W., WASHINGTON„ D.C. 2DODB • 29&819;{ a FOREIGNI Number 121 April 22, 1975 of' State David Owen made a spliash disclosure in Parliament (and in hiis version of negotiations with, nine:months. He revealedihe had U.K. Minister April 11 with a news conference and' tv followup) of Briti.sh tobacco mfrs,. during the'past made these proposals:last Jully:', Contributiomby the industry of a"silzeable percentage"' of its ad budgets to anti-smoking "education." • Stopping brand-name use at sponsored events. • Putting, tar yields in ads and',on packs. Prohibiting cigarette advertising at cinemas. • Moving the health warning to packet flaps for greater vi~s- ibility, and changing it tolthe way it "will be'carried" on government antismoking posters:: "DANGER: CIGARETTES ' CAUSE LUNG CA'NCER,, BRONCHITIS, HEART DISEASE." • Banning gift,coupons, or at least using them only on low- to-middle "tar" yield brandis., DR. OWEN said it "is a matter of'great regret to me" and that he was "appalled"' that the industry rejected virtually every proposal. Media reaction appeared mixed--some recognizing that some of the proposals were inappropriate. Then,, on,April 13, a budget was presen,ted' containing a siz- able tax increase onitobacco products. Unlike the U.S_ where the budget andltax:proposals are debatable, the Brit- ish,move became effective upon presentation. As the United. Kingdom imports all its tobacco, the increase'amounts'to an additional'duty of 2.05 Pounds which averages 17C American per package of 201cigarettes.

-2- A knowledgable observer in Lond'on told the Institute,the increase is only coincidental to the Owen disclosure, that it,was for revenue pur- poses only and bore no anti-smoking connotation whatsoever, , THE SMOKE-FILLED ROOM really isn't, according to ainew research:report in the New England Journal of Medicine by Drs., Hiiinds'and First at,Harvard's School of Pub- li~c Health., They samplediair inconspiicuously in a number of norma, smoking situations--buses, trains, cocktail lounges and so on. They used nicotine as a clear measure because its only source is tobacco smoke, as contrasted with:carbon monoxide's "Widespread distribution"' from many sources. RESEARCH In,an accompanying editorial invited by the NEM, researcher Huber of Harvard Medical School and Boston's Beth Esreal hospital wrote, that the new, data "demonstrate that in public pZaces nonsmokers couZ'd'potentiaZ:ly consume: Z/Z000 to Z/Z00 of one f,iZ- ter cigarette per hour, a level of exposure that has no knonm serious association with disease." Associated Press reported the findings. American Lung Association re- action was awaited, for two reasonsm First, its Massachusetts affili- ate paidlfor the new,study. Second, ALA,propaganda up till now has claimed that "the nonsmoker inhales as much harmful tobacco as the smoker inhales from four or five cigarettes." LANCET, a Britishimedical journal, expressed concern in an editorial about implications of new smoking materials. The piece included thi~s quote: "Painting mouse skin with smoke condensate, which is accepted as a biological test for carcinogens in smoke, is obviousLy a far cry from the repetitive exposure of'the human bronchial epitehlium to both the condensate and the vapor phase of cigaret'te smoke over many years." -BURCH, the Engli~sh scientist who publicly changed his mind about smoking-lung cancer last year, extended his analysis in a British quarterly, Journal of the Society of Occu a- tional Medicine: "The conclusion that is widely, and confidently drawn--that lung cancer "is almost entirely due to cigarette smoking' (RohaZ CoZlege of Physicians, Z97Z)--does not stand up:to critical anaZ'- ysis. " And in a letter to Lancet, commentiingion development of nontobacco smoking materials, Burch said "no causaZ:mechanism has yet been proposed'that is consistent with the epidemioZogical evidence. .,.With:such;gaps and weaknesses in the orthodox thesis, is it' really wise in these economicaZZy, depressed'times to pur- sue extravagant projects that may well turn out to be ZargeZy misconceiued7" UP TO 1,00'A observations a day for several months all over downtown Toronto have: let a team investigati~ngicarbon mon- oxide levels to conclude that "i~t would seem undesirable to spend more than two hours walking or working onia crowded thoroughfare."' The CO levels they found rangedlfrom 10 to 50 parts per million, with "muchihigher average concentra- tions" in "such adverse sites as poorly ventilated' under- passes and underground garages." The study was done for the York-Toronto Respiratory Disease Assn,..

-N. -3- DR. JOSEPH FRAUMENI,, environmental cancer specialiist for National Can- cer Institute, reported,discovery of high lungicancer rates among men & women,liviing,near metal smelters i!n more thanitwo dozen UI.S. coun- ties. EMPHYSEMA: S'tartiingiwithithe!premise that smokers wholare deficient,enough in al!pha-1-antitrypsin, (AAT) will'~ develop emphysema, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that a,Wash- iington University School of Medicine research team has sug- gested that the body chemical~ may not be working in other emphysema sufferers. The deficiency can be identified in only about 5 per cent of those affected'by the lungidisease.. NON-SMOKERS have a higher rate of asthma and,hay fever than smokers, according to a study of 69,767 men and women who underwent total check- ups in Chlifornia between 1964!and 1968. Dr. Carl C'. Seltzer, Harvard, presented the findings at the annual congress of the American Colilege of,Allergists. _ <. .:._. ,.1 „ NONSMOKER ISS'UE'. MARYLAND passed three no-smoke laws before ad- journment of the legislature. They effect pub- lic elevators,, require directors of hospitals andiphysicians' offices to reguTate smoking, and require allotment of smokingisecti!ons on intra- state buses in public service. NEW YORK LEGSSLATURE~completed action on a biill to' prohibit smoking.in public transportation and indoor public facilii- ties such as librariies, museums and,theaters.. Mayor of Los Angeles signed!a no-smoking ordinance which will becomee effective in early September. One provision states that no divisionn of'smoking-nonsmoking areas:shal'l be made on a front versus rear basis., ARIZONA'Senate Commitee approved l!atest roundlof legislation ex,pand'ing no-smokiingi Law. One state senator said, "l think this may be as far as we can go on,thi's. Pretty soon peopZe are going to fi,ght back. " FLORIDA STATE SENTE:COMMITTEE kiilled a no-smoking measure and two billls .... . _ .,. k- remain pendingl' rn the House. F j Smoking ban at Wisconsin State Assembly committee sessions was buriediby a committee chairman,who commented, "I don't think anyone's morals or behavior ought to be legisllated'."' ENFORCEMENT'OF TUCSON''S!LAWS against smoking, suggests i~ts deputy city attorney, could be done by "deputized" employees in public buildings who wouldlissue warnings and' tickets just "like meter maid&...". Enos P. Shaffer suggested, to stop smoking iin elevators for instance, desigr nating building guardls:as'peace officers and instituting periodic pa- troTs:of elevators without notice. KANSAS LEGISLATURE has enactedismoking,bani('Newsletter 120), and bill awaits action of governor. Eldorado Times:comments:: "The smokers who had no regard for the rights of other persons are responsibZe for the passage of a nittygritt'y Zam like this."

HELPINCs'HAND: Ponca, a,company which distributes tobacco products that produced more thav7,$2q million in direct tax revenues i~n four southwestern states in a year's time, provid'edlan editorial in iits employee publication worth your reading:: The tr.end m tte kongsmokt g: t uesd p- reo- CRIME ) cponsm d' bill po 'd- gjorfirses,of upi m. dsm,.unemploym t nergy, c and - unequalled by. $200 1 oklrrgin pubhcr.plsces h ee elevators, theatres, th daya. of prohib on lon, llq ny Hsrking, back:to, theWbran ; artmuse-I hospitaLd, busea,./G'a our opnion ' tlred omout', cryof'the Surzgon General (who; what, that J'all.cigarette.iHouston re.extingwshedsimW whtheheor'It,my,bb)onth.llsoftohacc mmke;many, t - eomlyitwoWdnt.hklp-e'.wta.ttve.etifhngemogover. nre.looking.hard for an ex use to.extingpuh o ce. and foratl Texas' largcst city. .~ sgat t rette~, We eedldssl`.~ t. C04;.t.LD h rr ry enL d nnAmarillo,"5ure people Rd moke alta k ta~noohg, t7~ t tob I ta tom . to 4.' ., there hearl . obn.o ~dimus , bwl oOh fimd drinkungg bmaxi.ous . and it's. not'. . '. '. ia tleast'one;ltut rent, A. 5t:couldNOT.Ttieseillegal. Sormepeapl fmd:sex.obm d.-l'a tillegpl, ' .-. queattona. and obeeraationa have been brou~t up manYY nther. I hete bigotry hke~, th'aE (thelegisLt~mn) -~~ Wh t',uaur- tim . The,d,iehas..been,cwsttol bel e"'patsy" for thoseil6. pmsing u thst (he measure paased tAe.Jusisp,udenceCom- -' - befllingmankindlfor'sh6chith perta. csn findlno cu mnttee. 11-0:! NOT ONE DISSENTINGVqTE` and then Tlve.public was.beco.ming.apelA t to.soltctat a.for:re- tleared the Senate.o.erwhelmin&. S.d FONCA'r. R.. J. aearch ftwda, wAen for somef rty y ars nnill , ponmiL- Melihskyy and'. STA~NLARD's J..E.. Mead-'"THe speed with , fions,of:dolllenhd:Ueenpuueed't.grantst thnotosigmifi- whlichth~ssu wa~ .handledwou4dcertinlrylad:oeto t. p n nt blreakthlrowgh. The Suugeo 6alls"report'akthebalie.v thatthe~ematter wu enther prejvdgled as a - ontrobe.toffm sshanone b inferrin a Drkth h ~stal tssue„ or tha[itwms a~metter.of'lilfeand.deethctothe rou y gg dtizens.of the 91sneof TExm." W tii~e cormmon f hn t~Ickn e a and g tg, aggiru agonuztngdea[h.

-5- ATLANTA JOURNAL AND CONSTITUTIONiprintedlthe inside story of'how two married,, childless women double-handedly secured'passage of the Georgia law which bans smoking anywhere that anyone puts up a,no-smoki~ng,sign. (Newsletter 1118). One, the daughter of a tobacco farmer, says "Tobacco farmers don't rMmt to grow tobacco. It's the tobacco companies t'hat'want it." She says her father smoked inihis,home and ignored hers and her mother"s "distress at breathing the fumes." BOTHiLADIES were sent buttonholing in,the legi~slature by the Georgia LungiAssn., armed with literature containiingiappar- ently baseless nonsmoker health, charges., They got help from Rev. Hosea Williams, a legislator and--according to the paper-- "civil rights agitator" who made his statewide political ap- aratus avai~lable., Supported by medicall testimony and the Democratic leaders in both houses (both saidito be heavy smokers), the ladies rolled up a 13'8-23 tally in the House and' got yes votes from14'4 of 56 voting senators. CALLING ITSELF "the world's largest employment service",. Snelling and Snelling of Pao1i, Pa.,, is conducti!ng a "nation- wide survey of personnel and sales executives"' to obtain "in- sight on,employers" attitudes and policies concerning smoking."' Just, to get things started, the iintroduction to its question- naire says "the American Cancer Society published statistics proving higher absenteeism cnarong employees who smoke cigaret'tes. " Sample ques- tionc "More and more companies. ..choose to hire personnel' fromith.e. 53% of'the mork',force comprised of'nonsmokers. Does your company havee any restrictions. . .?" WELCOME ASSISTANCE!: Tex,as citizens have spontaneously organizedla "Smoke Friendly" campaign using bright bumper and vending machine stickers as courtesy reminders prefer- able to regulation. Local Iung assn. is reported to have requested a supply of bumper strips and Da11Tas:ASH promised cooperation with,_the effort. SPfOI'CE ~_- FRIENDLY! Courtei0w'$mOlwS' COarYtw .,___ -_..a.,.....".....,......~ ,_.. KILPATRICK' COLUMN (Newsletter 119) drawing alllot of fire from GP1SP in letters to editors. Typical:: "Smokers pollute their lungs and', those near them and seldom give a hoot about the pollution or stink forced on famiZies„ coZ'- Zeagues and'friends." On the other hand a Bowie, Md, man thanks Kilpatrick forr column through letter to the editor of Washington Star andd sugg ests a new warning: "Warning,: the FTC is a danger to your freedom, and wi.ZZ contribute to an aZready overZy bureaucratic gpvern= ment and'uZtimately,negate ALL of your freedoms:" SECOND-HAND CIGARETTE SMOKE is more than just "smellly" to the non-smoker says the St,. Joseph, Mo. Gazette in quoting material from the American Lung Assn., in an editorial. "'It actually, according to recent studies, has harmful effects on non-smokers," and the paper concludes that,for a non-smoker "breathing may, be dangerous to: your health."

-6- EDITORIAL COMMENT from the Baltimore Sun: "Non-smokers no l'onger accept their fate as unwilling smokers in,enc2osed spaces where smokers are present;,wn,th increasing effectiveness the non-smokers are demand= ing; the smokers take their habit elsewheres " In summary, the edi~- tor ial concTudle:s, ": ..if non-smokers around them don't want them to smoke then they are obliged to honor these wishes. Smokers can le- gitimately, hope that the non-smokers will be polite when they make their requests." A ST. LOUIS HOSPITAL decided--in the interest of health, a spokesman said--to stop selling cigarettes on the premises. I~t just so happened that TV cameras were there whenithe vendingimachines were carted out.. SEATTLE TIMES, in editorial comment oniState Boardlof Hea:lthh lack of enforcement authority on smoking ban (Newsletter 119) suggested it is just as well and saidr, "Smoking,mores are chang- ing,, cmd'it could.be that'social pressures, together with the: Health Board's ban„ rai,'ll'prove.increasingl'y effectiue in providing relief'for: FI~RST MEETING'of Central Illinois Chapter of ASH heldiApril 3 in Peoria. Stated goal:: Establish areas for non,smokers in public places. QUESTIONNAIRES were sent to 42 cand:idates for the Madison, Wisc. City Council by GASP chapter and 34 replies indicated there was no difference of opinion that there should be no smoking in buses, theaters, lecture and concert halls, ele- vators, libraries and museums. Afew reservations were ex- pressed about banning smoking in retail and food stores:, pub- lic meetings, and hospitals and other medical facilities. .HARD TIMES hit the UCLA,campus branch of GASP regarding requested offi- cial office space. Laura Frank, coordinator andlonly member of the or- ganization, complains that someone d'ecided that the Gay Student Union, needed office space more than GASP. WASHINGTON CONGRESSIONAL CONFEREES who resolved the differ- ences between~Senate and House versions:of'the agricultural price support bill (Newsletter 120) announced!that alll principal Senate amendments added to the: House bill-were d~7opped. ~This means the Hudd'leston amendfnent, which proposedito raise federal support of'tobac:co to 70 per cent of parity,, is:out. Sen. Moss's office recently told aiLouisville Cburier-Journal reporter, "The hza2dtsritting; is on the wall, and the senator thinks,it is now just a,matter of time before the Senate will take the step to end support of't'obacco.," WASHINGTON BUREAU'CHIEF for,the Louisville Courier-JournaL, Ward Sin- clair, who watches federall legislation with a practiced eye for its eifects says, "The fi'rst'' telltale signs have become cl'ear: The federal' support of'tobacco progrcans that thousands of Kentuckians have taken,as an,articZe of'fai'th for so long is in g,rorring danger. " Signs cited by Sinclair: •i"The unity so long traditional between tobacco states and growers, co- operatives and warehouseraen is gone. In years past, they tendedtoo speak as one.. Thi!s year they~are not.

-7- •~ "The old-line whip-hand type of'Zegislative leadership and influence exercised until recently by, tobacco-state:members of,'Congress...has diminished. •"Ne7ocomers to the House and Senate, where the programs customariZy, have emjoyed wide support, are bring;ing,new views that tend to find' a disturbing contradiction in a system that spends millions on medi- cal research yet supports tobacco with federal money., • "Old farm-state congressional coa2itions refl'ecting ari attitude: of you-support-my-program-aru3-I'ZZ-support-ypu are breaking up. Even senators from tobacco-growing states are voting against continued federal backing of the programs." AT HOUSE HEW APPROPRIATZDNS HEARINGS, no real talk of cigarettes so far. Rauscher, director of the National Cancer Institute, did say that there's been progress in finding lung cancer with sputum tests in "sympton-free heavy smokers." Across the Capitol, Sen. Tunney (D-Calif.) opened hear- ings on a new toxic substances controll act by, observi~ng,, among other things, that he is "concerned by statements which suggest that up to 90 percent of all cancers may have environmentaZ„ usuaZly chemical, causes. Of course, environ- ment'al pollution includes smokzng„ but' a signifticant porttion of, cancer occurs in people who have never smoked." FEDERAL TRADE COMM'ISSION announced results of latest tests for "tar" and nicotine contents of 136 varieties of domestic cigarettes April 9. FURNITURE MAKERS, concerned about threatened flammability regulation,, met publicly with Consumer Product Safety Commission, proposingiin lieu of'regul'ation further research and a public service media campaign on asserted fire hazards, principally dealing with smoking. Some commis- sioners appeared unimpressed; others asked for further details to be supplied. CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR notes that while Congress mandates the National Clearinghouse an Smoking and Health to report Jan. I of' each year, last,year's report was six months late. This year's report will be nine months late, the paper said. y-- =:AtRTS-SM'OKIPSG. GUM•granted U:.S_, patent which asserts that the gum base contains an effective, non-toxic amount of an active material that is capable of'developing an unpleasant taste when contacted by tobacco smoke., L MED I A NOW COMES GOOD HOUSEKEEPING wiith:"Here are thee facts about women and smoking." Firsts, they say, evidence now shows that the danger to women who smoke is as great as it is for male smokers. And second, it seems to be more d'ifficult for women,to stop smoking;than it is for men. Their facts:: "Lung, cancer is now the third major cancer ki'ZZer among, women.,..Smoking during pregnancy can harm the fetus and create life- long healt'h',problems for the ehi7.d:..Respiratory diseases attributable to smoking; are sharply rising in women.,..Heart disease and',suddem deat'h , due to heart failure are increasing among women at such a rate that they soon may be,as common as:th'ey are among,men."

-8- AND'FAMILY CIRCLE MAGAZINEIran a lengthy,, combination "Rate your riisk factors for the commonest health hazard of women" and "Preventive medi- cine guide!" article. Question 9:: "Do you now smoke ei'garettes?'"' For the answer, in this example, the read'er turns to two separate citations: in the guid,e:! "Drinking, smoki~ngi„ other drugis" and "The silent diseases." The first reference includes,, "Cigarette smoking has been asso- ciated arith,lung cancer, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, heartattack, stroke." The conclusion is to make the decision not to smoke:: "In terms of prevention of disease, it's the most valuable contribution we can make to ourselves and'our gro:vi.ng;chiZdrens°' The other reference, under "Cancer", states, "Lung cancer is one form, of malignancy for which a truly effective preventive measure exists - avoid cigarette smoking." Same counsel on cancer of the mouth and throat, heart dis ease and stroke. Heavy smokers are even listed as among the most sus- ceptible to alcoholism. AND GLAMOUR MAGAZINE ran a 32-question medical folklore quiz. Question 18: Cigarettes stunt,your growth~. True ( ) False O. The answer, in part: "False. Cigarettes do not stunt your growth. They can,, however, affect the groarth of a fetus if the mother smokes." CONNECTICUT'LEGISLATUREIdrew the ire of the New London Day., The paper noted most of the municipal boards and commi~ssions in its part of the state are obeying the state law which prohibits smokingat meetings open to the public. "The scmre cannot be said of all state legislators. In what amounts to an,act of monumental hypocrisy, the very Zeg;isZators who passed the no smoking Zam now def y it open,Zy. " N. Y. TIMES "Cancer Porkbarrel" editorial (Newsletter 120) was labeled as "irresponsible rhetoric" in a letter by one member of the scientific community who went on to say: "Until prevention of cancer is possible and implemented, perhaps a supremely difficult task if the increasing sale of cigarettes is taken as one example, the need for research to find higher rates of cure for cancer will exist." JAMES GRAHAM', writing for the Detroit, News: "In a phamphZet called Tobacco ~ Facts, the Tobacco Institute grappZes head on urith the cZiiivns cited by nonsmokers.," I a reference to ALA's reams of printed materials which it says supports its claims. ( "THE DEBATE," asserts the St. Joseph News-Press, "over the Zi!nk,between cigaret smoking,and a variety of potentiaZ:Zy fatal diseases goes on!. It remains unresoZ'ued."' HEALT'H ORGAN'IIZATIONS A PURPOSE'oflthe Third World,Conference on Sfioking & Health, set for June at the Waldorf,, as stated in the new American Cancer Society Annual Report:, ". ..To consider new actions necessary,to counter some of the recent gains made by the ciga- rette industry." SPOKESMAN for the Virginia Lung,Association reacted to the Richmond Times-Diispatch,"Tobacco War" editorial (Newsletter. 120)', in a long letter. Part of,text: "Emphysema (and other chronic obstructive lung diseases chiefly caused by ci~garets) claim amincreasing number of ill,and disabled." ##'#