Nicotine News and Research

RSS

Nicotine is an alkaloid found in the nightshade family of plants (''Solanaceae'') which constitutes approximately 0.6–3.0% of dry weight of tobacco, with biosynthesis taking place in the roots, and accumulating in the leaves.

Study finds passive smoking increases risk of still birth by 23%

Pregnant non-smokers who breathe in the second-hand smoke of other people are at an increased risk of delivering stillborn babies or babies with defects, a study led by researchers at The University of Nottingham has found.

9 Mar 2011

Study: Residential treatment greatly improves smoking abstinence

In the March issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, researchers report that residential treatment for tobacco dependence among heavy smokers greatly improves the odds of abstinence at six months compared with standard outpatient treatment.

8 Mar 2011

Tobacco smoking leads to less activity in the 'executive center' of brain

Tobacco smoking is the leading preventable cause of death and disease in the U.S., with more than 400,000 deaths each year attributable to smoking or its consequences. And yet teens still smoke. Indeed, smoking usually begins in the teen years, and approximately 80 percent of adult smokers became hooked by the time they were 18. Meanwhile, teens who don't take up smoking usually never do.

3 Mar 2011

Experimental drug may help preserve neurological function in survivors of sudden cardiac arrest

An experimental drug that targets a brain system that controls inflammation might help preserve neurological function in people who survive sudden cardiac arrest, new research suggests.

2 Mar 2011

Rise of the female smoker in developing world

...

1 Mar 2011

Sudden cessation of smoking may be symptom of lung cancer

Many longtime smokers quit spontaneously with little effort shortly before their lung cancer is diagnosed, leading some researchers to speculate that sudden cessation may be a symptom of lung cancer.

1 Mar 2011

Research: Tobacco outlets still concentrated around elementary and secondary schools

For years the tobacco industry has argued that efforts to ban tobacco advertising near schools would constitute a total ban on tobacco advertising in urban areas.

23 Feb 2011

Omeros announces license agreement with Daiichi Sankyo for PDE7 inhibitors

Omeros Corporation today announced that its exclusive license to phosphodiesterase 7 inhibitors from Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. has been amended to include addiction and compulsive disorders in the field of use.

23 Feb 2011

New York smoking ban gone too far? Health experts disagree

Now there is a faction that believes the soon-to-pass smoking ban on most parks and many beaches throughout New York City to be “going too far” and is questioning the bill.

20 Feb 2011

Roundup: Calif. kids' care; high Mass. health workers' costs; Iowa nursing home inspectors

The push is on to enroll thousands of children who previously could not get health coverage or whose parents paid much higher premiums because of their children's pre-existing medical conditions. Under new federal rules that took effect last fall, children with chronic health conditions cannot be denied coverage.

17 Feb 2011

Children with ADHD may have greater risk of developing substance problems in adolescence, adulthood

Children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder are two to three times more likely than children without the disorder to develop serious substance abuse problems in adolescence and adulthood, according to a study by UCLA psychologists and colleagues at the University of South Carolina.

14 Feb 2011

Unique skin test to measure unhealthy lifestyle

Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin has developed a unique measuring method which permits medical personnel, within minutes, to say whether the lifestyle of a person is healthy or unhealthy. This process is now being tested with the support of the Competence Networks for optical Technologies, in a pilot study with 50 students, supported by OpticNet Deutschland e.V. and funded by the Federal Ministry for Education and Research.

11 Feb 2011

Pediatricians can play a key role in promoting tobacco-free lifestyle among children, adolescents

Nicotine addiction usually begins during the critical teenage years, and pediatric healthcare professionals can play a prominent role in promoting a tobacco-free lifestyle among children and adolescents, as described in an article published online ahead of print in Pediatric Allergy, Immunology, & Pulmonology, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

10 Feb 2011

E-cigarettes produce abstinence rates nearly double that of traditional method

Two new studies available online and being published in the April edition of the American Journal of Preventative Medicine find that electronic cigarettes produces abstinence rates nearly double that of traditional nicotine replacement methods and that consumer interest in e-cigarettes is currently much higher than interest in traditional nicotine replacement products.

10 Feb 2011

Study: E-cigarettes are safer alternative to tobacco smoking

A study just released by the Journal of Public Health Policy is taking a closer look at traditional tobacco cigarettes vs. e-cigarettes, and the results are surprising even the biggest skeptics. Based on available evidence, the study "Electronic cigarettes as a harm reduction strategy for tobacco control: A step forward or a repeat of past mistakes?" concluded that e-cigarettes are safer than tobacco cigarettes, and have the potential to become a smoking cessation device.

9 Feb 2011

BUSPH: Electronic cigarettes are promising tool to help smokers quit

A study led by Boston University School of Public Health researchers reports that electronic cigarettes are a promising tool to help smokers quit, producing six-month abstinence rates nearly double those for traditional nicotine replacement products.

9 Feb 2011

Ability of e-cigarettes to help smokers cut down or quit still unknown

Electronic cigarettes are drawing heavy media and marketing attention, and while a new study finds that consumer interest also runs high, a companion study underscores that e-cigarettes' ability to help smokers cut down or quit is unknown.

8 Feb 2011

iPhone software apps designed to help people quit smoking fall short of the mark

A new study finds that iPhone software applications designed to help people quit smoking fall short of the mark because they do not meet accepted standards.

8 Feb 2011

New Spanish version of ASPIRE for Hispanic teens

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center's popular web-based teen prevention and smoking-cessation program, ASPIRE, now speaks Spanish.

2 Feb 2011

Smoking kills, it’s as simple as that!

Australia’s Department of Health and Ageing yesterday (Monday) launched its most focused anti-tobacco campaign with a new TV adverts graphically linking smoking with lung cancer. The message of the $61 million campaign says, “Every cigarette you smoke brings cancer closer.”

1 Feb 2011