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** 06 January 2021
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** UK
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UK 'cannot duck' post-Covid inequalities, report warns (#1)
Majority of adults determined to lead healthier lifestyles in the face of COVID-19 (#2)
Vape store body lobbies government for essential retailer status (#3)
** International
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US: New measures for drafting health laws endanger public health, experts say (#4)
** UK
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**
The UK "cannot duck" tackling inequalities of health, ethnicity, education and jobs post-COVID, a major review has warned. The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) Deaton Review of Inequalities warned the fabric of society was under threat.
Launched 18 months ago, the review says COVID-19 worsened existing problems but there is now a "once-in-a-generation opportunity to tackle the disadvantages faced by many that this pandemic has so devastatingly exposed". The pandemic had a disproportionate impact on ethnic minority groups and deprived communities and showed that the UK’s best-paid and most highly educated have been "much better able to ride out the crisis", the report said.
The report explored a number of inequalities, including COVID-19’s unequal economic impact on young people and its disproportionate educational impact on poorer students, and emphasised mental and physical health inequalities. Progress in reducing poor mental and physical health could be "one of the clearest indications of success of economic and social policy", the report stated.
Source: BBC News, 05 January 2021
See also: IFS Deaton Review of Inequalities ([link removed])
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Seven in 10 adults say that the threat of the coronavirus has motivated them to lead healthier lives this year, a public health survey has revealed. Published by Public Health England (PHE), the poll found that almost half of the population (43%) feel more motivated to make changes to their life this January.
Four in 10 (43%) regular smokers plan to quit this year and nearly half of those who increased their alcohol intake during the second lockdown (45%) intend to drink less alcohol. Eight in 10 adults aged over 18 have decided to modify their lifestyle in 2021, and around six million adults aged 40 to 60 plan to eat more healthily (40%), lose weight (39%), and exercise more (41%).
To support the public in making these changes, PHE has launched its latest ‘Better Health new year’ campaign to encourage the nation to work towards a healthier lifestyle. Public Health minister Jo Churchill said, ‘’the Better Health campaign provides a range of tools, like Couch to 5K, to support people in their choices. This, together with the government’s world-leading obesity strategy, will help motivate and support everyone to take up healthier routines in 2021.’’
Source: LocalGov, 05 January 2021
See also: Public Health Press Release ([link removed])
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Trade body the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) is lobbying government to classify vape shops as essential retailers as Britain locks down again due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The lobbying effort has been ongoing since the first national lockdown in March, but the association has redoubled its efforts, warning that former smokers who have made the switch to e-cigarettes “could be tempted back”. Vape stores were essential for helping smokers with new year’s resolutions to quit smoking to maintain their efforts, and for mitigating the risk of passive smoking to the families of smokers during lockdown, according to John Dunne, director general of the UKVIA.
Prior to the pandemic, there were more than 4,000 vape stores in the UK, according to the Local Data Company. Around a quarter are predicted not to survive. Sales of vaping products have switched to supermarkets and convenience stores, which have expanded their ranges over the past 12 months.
Editorial note: The UKVIA has tobacco industry members, for more information see the UKVIA page on Tobacco Tactics ([link removed]).
Source: The Grocer, 06 January 2021
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** International
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New regulations which favour certain kinds of scientific research over others in the drafting of public health rules will weaken the government’s ability to create new protections against public health risks, experts say.
On Tuesday 5th January 2021, Andrew Wheeler, the administrator of the American Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), formally released a new regulation stating that “pivotal” scientific studies that make public their underlying data and models must be given more weight than studies that keep such data confidential.
The changes resemble proposals originally laid out nearly 25 years ago by the tobacco industry as they sought to create “explicit procedural hurdles” for the EPA to clear before it could use science to address the health impacts of smoking.
Public health experts have warned that the new rule essentially blocks the use of population studies in which subjects offer medical histories, lifestyle information and other personal data only on the condition of privacy. Such studies have served as the scientific underpinnings of some of the most important public health regulations of the past half century, including tobacco control regulation.
Source: New York Times, 04 January 2021
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