E-cigarettes don’t help smokers quit more than other interventions, though financial incentives do, a new study in the New England Journal of Medicine finds.
Globally, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death, and recently surpassed heart disease as the leading cause of smoking-related mortality. The National Cancer Institute estimates that this year in the U.S., more than 222,000 men and women will be diagnosed with the disease and 157,300 will die. The high mortality rate is in part a consequence of the difficulty in diagnosing the disease. Using chest X-rays, physicians typically discover lung cancers only at an advanced stage.
Minnesota implemented the first statewide smoking ban in 1975, and since then, 30 other states and more than 350 cities and towns have enacted restrictions. A meta-study by the Institute of Medicine indicates that the health benefits of such legislation are both immediate and significant.
Historically, smoking and obesity have had the greatest impact on disease and mortality rates in the United States. However, the relative importance of the two factors, has evolved significantly in the past two decades.
The costs of health care directly related to smoking in the United States are estimated to be in the range of $97 billion. This figure typically takes into account treatment for ailments such as lung cancer and emphysema, with the combined costs representing more than 10% of all U.S. medical expenses. New research is adding to this total estimated health cost by also assessing secondary effects, such as how smoking affects recovery time from other medical procedures.
Research on the gambling industry has increased in recent years as more states have considered or enacted plans to permit the building of casinos or to allow other forms of gambling. Still, there has been relatively little on-site research chronicling gambling behavior at casinos themselves.
Sexual minority youths — those who self-identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or unsure of their sexuality — remain underrepresented in the academic data on youth issues. Such information is crucial for schools and education systems, in particular, as they look to design and improve outreach and intervention programs to address the health needs of this population.
Smoking bans have been found to reduce heart attacks, but how such laws bring about other improved health outcomes is less clear. Little is known about the degree to which bans reduce second-hand smoke exposure, for example.
