Tweet Kristen Stewart has reportedly stubbed out her cigarettes for good in a bid to please her beau Robert Pattinson. The reunited pair are said to be trying to get healthy together and after the British actor cut out the cigarettes, his Twilight co-star has apparently followed his lead. An insider told Perez Hilton that the Kristen wants to support her boyfriend and so is quitting smoking too. “Kristen and Rob used to smoke cigarettes togeth ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet Did you read last week’s news about women and smoking and how if you quit now, even after years of smoking, you could dramatically reduce your risk of premature death and all kinds of awful debilitating diseases that are attributed to smoking? It should be good news for smokers to see this well-publicized study, which said that if you quit before age 30, you could avoid as much as 97 percent of the risk, and if you quit before 40, you cou ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet Smoking is at historic lows in the United States, 18.9 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control. That’s about a full percentage point below where it was before the 2009 hike in the federal tax on a pack of cigarettes from 39 cents to $1.01 — a stunning victory for public health and the public purse. In the 2000s, national smoking rates plateaued at around 20 percent, prompting calls for higher taxes to discourage smokers. C ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet You might not expect Russia, the world’s second-biggest cigarette market, where 42% of the population smokes, to be thinking of limiting the vice. Yet the country is mulling “smoke-free” measures that would ban tobacco ads, boost taxes on cigarettes and prohibit smoking in public places across the country by 2015. Public smoking bans are spreading in many emerging economies. Cigarette firms could once rely on these markets to prop up ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet Though it initially drove down business, Paul Piccirillo, co-owner of Porky’s Cafe in Shelton, said the state’s ban on smoking in bars was ultimately positive for his establishment. “In the beginning, people stopped coming in,” Piccirillo said. “Now, there’s no difference. It’s definitely more pleasant for the people working in the bar. (And) it’s definitely a more healthy environment.” ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet Voters in Colorado, like those in Oregon, will soon decide whether or not to legalize marijuana. But ganja use isn’t the only vice receiving editorial page ink these days. The Denver Post is urging Boulder City Council not to ban cigarette smoking over a several block area downtown, reasoning that it’s a legal activity that doesn’t necessarily harm others when done in the open air. By contrast, Boulder’s paper, The D ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy may have an increased risk of asthma — even if they were not exposed to secondhand smoke after birth, a large study of European children suggests. Many studies have found secondhand smoke may worsen kids’ asthma symptoms, or possibly raise their risk of developing the lung disease in the first place. But it has been less clear if smoking during pregnancy is linked to asthma. Most studi ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet The Central Java administration’s plan to reduce the amount of tobacco under cultivation in the province will hurt farmers, according to a tobacco farming association. The administration previously announced plans to reduce the amount of land dedicated to tobacco cultivation from 45,930 hectares to 26,000 hectares. The province currently produces 39,000 tons of tobacco a year, according to reports. The Indonesian Tobacco Farmers Associati ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio higher education officials plan a vote Monday urging the state’s public campuses to ban tobacco use. That would include Ohio State, one of the nation’s largest universities, which currently bans only indoor smoking. Bans on the use, advertising and sales of tobacco in all its forms are being enacted or considered at perhaps half of campuses nationwide, sometimes over the objections of student smokers, ... Jump to full article >>

Tweet The CDC here in Atlanta a few days ago issued a news report indicating the new scary non-smoking ad is having its effects on smokers. The ad shows a woman without fingers and a man without his lower legs indicating that these were caused by smoking. Buerger’s disease is a disease caused when the arteries and the veins become blocked and causes infection, which can result in amputation. Virtually, everyone diagnosed with this disease used ... Jump to full article >>