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** 05 August 2021
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** UK
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** Private equity giant Carlyle given bid extension for pharma firm Vectura (#1)
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** Coronation Street is most complained about soap for its depiction of smoking (#2)
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** Alcohol linked to more cancers than previously thought, study finds (#3)
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** Opinion: The poor and vulnerable have been left behind in the national effort to quit smoking (#4)
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** International
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** China's minors able to buy e-cigarettes despite ban - state media (#5)
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** Graphic warning labels on cigarette packaging changes perceptions, finds study (#6)
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** UK
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** Private equity firm Carlyle has been given extra time to consider whether to pursue a deal for Vectura after it was outbid by tobacco company Philip Morris. Carlyle’s £958 million offer for Vectura had included conditions requiring meetings to have been held on the deal by August 3rd but it has now agreed to extend this deadline to August 24th.

Source: Mail on Sunday, 4 August 2021
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** Coronation Street has been confirmed as the most complained about programme on British TV for its frequent depictions of smoking, drugs, and alcohol. The ITV soap had a total of 310 complaints in the last five years.

Many of these complains centred on the on-screen local shop showing cigarettes on display even after real supermarkets and newsagents had been banned from displaying them. Watchers also complained about the amount of alcohol on show in the frequent scenes in the Rovers Return Inn.

The figures were collected by Vape Club. Popular ITV show Love Island received 73 complaints, with smoking cut out of the show after the first few series following these complaints.


Source: Mirror, 4 August 2021
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** A major new study has found that consuming alcohol increases the risk of getting more cancers than previously thought. Alcohol consumption was found to be linked to several cancers including those of the head and neck (mouth, pharynx, and larynx), oesophageal and bowel, and breast and liver cancer.

The study also found that drinking at least one cup of coffee a day was associated with a lower risk of developing liver cancer and basal cell carcinoma of the skin. The research also found that eating dairy products and wholegrains reduces the risk if colorectal cancer.

Alcohol increases the risk of cancer because when it is metabolized it breaks down into chemicals that can bind into DNA, resulting in mutations that could become cancerous. Coffee, however, is thought to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that may protect against diseases triggered by inflammation such as cancer.

The study, led by a team at Imperial College London, looked at data from 860 reviews of published studies which explored the association between food and nutrient intake and the risk of either developing or dying from 11 cancers. The researchers are now calling for more targeted public health policies that enable people to understand the link between drinking alcohol and cancer to encourage them to limit their consumption.

Source: The Guardian, 4 August 2021
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Senior Lecturer in Addiction and Mental Health at the University of York, Ian Hamilton, writes that the poorest and most vulnerable have been left behind in the national efforts to reduce smoking rates.

Hamilton writes that considerable efforts have been made to achieve a reduction in population-level smoking with investment in smoking cessation clinics and nicotine replacement therapy amongst other interventions. However, such efforts have not benefited everyone equally. Research published this week by Cancer Research UK found that lower income groups have much higher rates of cancer caused by smoking than those from more affluent groups. People in contact with the criminal justice system, people using drugs, people with ill mental health, and poorer people all smoke in disproportionately high numbers.

Hamilton focuses on people with mental health problems. This group consume an estimated 30% of tobacco in the UK, a leading cause of their two-decade shorter average life expectancy . The physical health problems they develop, including heart disease, lung problems and cancer, compound existing psychological issues. He says that health professionals have not initiated conversations about quitting smoking as it is viewed as less of a problem than patients’ mental health problems.

Just when extra investment is needed to help such groups, Hamilton says that budgets are being slashed. If the government cannot afford to invest in smoking prevention and cessation services, the tobacco industry should be made to pay the costs through a polluter pays style levy. The tobacco industry has targeted vulnerable groups and is now targeting developing countries, despite recent comments from Philip Morris purporting to support a future ban on smoking.

Source: The Independent, 4 August 2021
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** International
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Chinese state media have reported that many minors are still able to purchase e-cigarettes in the country despite a ban on sales to under-18s.

Reporters from China’s official Xinhua news agency made unannounced visits to e-cigarette shops in the Northern cities of Tianjin and Shenyang. They found that enforcement of the e-cigarette ban was variable despite shops having signs stating that the sale of e-cigarettes to minors was prohibited.

One anonymous salesperson quoted by Xinhua admitted their e-cigarette store did not typically ask for proof of age, unless the customer appeared to be “obviously very young.” “For the others, we just turn a blind eye,” the salesperson said. Another vendor contacted by Xinhua on social media platform WeChat did not ask for the buyer’s age or ID.

Source: Reuters, 4 August 2021
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A new study has reinforced evidence that graphic warning labels on cigarette packets are effective in reminding smokers of the negative health consequences of smoking. The research found that graphic warning labels were effective both in causing smokers to perceive cigarettes to be less positive and in increasing their concerns about the health effects of smoking on themselves and their loved ones.

The study, published in Jama Network and led by researchers from San Diego State University and California State University San Marcos, involved the manufacture of special cigarette packs that incorporated the graphic warning labels used in Australia. Study participants were 357 smokers living in San Diego who agreed to purchase their preferred brand of cigarette from the study website. Participants were randomised to receive their cigarettes in one of three pack designs: in a package with a graphic warning label, with a blank pack, or in a standard commercially available US pack.

Participants were queried by interactive text messaging about concerns over health risks and about the health risks and about their perceptions of the most recent cigarettes that they smoked. Changes in consumption and smoking status were assessed at the end of the three-month intervention.

Participants who received cigarettes in the standard pack or a blank pack had no change in their positive perceptions of their cigarettes, while smokers randomized to the graphic warning label arm perceived their cigarettes less favourably. However, researchers found that whilst the labels made smokers more likely to think about quitting, they did not make them more likely to make a serious quit attempt or to actually quit.


Source: Medical Xpress, 4 August 2021

See also: Jama Network - Effect of Graphic Warning Labels on Cigarette Packs on US Smokers’ Cognitions and Smoking Behavior After 3 MonthsA Randomized Clinical Trial ([link removed])
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ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.

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