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** 22 June 2022
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** UK
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** Smokers in Central Bedfordshire are being invited to join a new health programme (#1)
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** Cancer Research UK roadshow to return to Blackburn (#2)
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** Oxford food shop fined thousands for selling illegal shisha tobacco (#3)
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** International
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** Tobacco consumption slows in the West, grows in Africa, say researchers (#4)
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** Nigeria: Tobacco industry exploiting social media to promote product in contravention of law (#5)
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** UK
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** Central Bedfordshire residents are now being invited to the Targeted Lung Health Check programme, which screens for lung cancer, following the successful launch in Luton in 2021.

Bedfordshire has poor outcomes for lung cancer and some of the highest rates of smoking, with a significant percentage of the local population labelled as smokers or former smokers. The programme is one of the second wave of sites to be rolled out as part of the NHS Long Term Plan.

Dr James Ramsay, Clinical Director for the Lung Health checks programme in Luton said: “The Lung Health Check programme will allow hundreds of people to receive potentially life-saving treatment for conditions much earlier than they would have before. This will bring huge benefits for the local population [...] Sadly, 20% of people in the UK still cannot name one symptom of lung cancer. This lack of awareness is one of the reasons why so many people with lung cancer are diagnosed at a later stage. We know if lung cancer is caught early, curative treatment is possible and people can go on to live life to the fullest. The difficulty has been finding it at those early stages.”

Existing and former smokers aged between 55 and 74 will be invited to have a free lung health check with a lung specialist at a convenient location close to where they live, this will initially be over the phone. If deemed high-risk they will be offered a low dose CT scan on a state-of-the-art mobile unit.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 21 June 2022
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Cancer Research nurses will be returning to Blackburn this week on Thursday, June 23, with the monthly Cancer Awareness Roadshow helping local people spot the signs and symptoms of the disease.

Since it began in 2006 the roadshow has welcomed over 700,000 visitors across the UK, helping people understand more about cancer and the small changes they can make to reduce the risk of cancer, and the importance of spotting symptoms early. The roadshow is part of Cancer Research UK’s continued commitment to making health information as accessible as possible to everyone.

Sandra Howard, Cancer Research UK Senior Cancer Awareness Nurse in the North West said: “Around 4 in 10 cases of cancer could be prevented each year in the UK largely through changes like stopping smoking and keeping a healthy weight [...] We’re here to help in areas that need it most and are looking forward to talking to lots of people in Blackburn about the steps they can take to help reduce their risk of cancer.”

To find out more about how to reduce the risk of cancer, visit Cancer Research UK’s page here ([link removed]) .

Source: Lancashire Telegraph, 22 June 2022
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A food store in Oxford has been fined £3,000 for trying to sell illegal shisha tobacco.

The court heard that trading standards visited the store on 6 May 2021 as part of Operation CeCe, a national trading standards initiative in partnership with HMRC. More than 21,000 grams of shisha tobacco was discovered in 113-unit packs were discovered behind the counter.

None of the packets were labelled with health warnings, and the vast majority made reference to a taste, smell or flavouring, all of which are prohibited.

The company director pleaded guilty to six offences under the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 and the Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2016.

Jody Kerman, Oxfordshire County Council’s Head of Trading Standards, said: “In a typical shisha session of about one hour, a shisha smoker can inhale the same amount of toxins as a cigarette smoker consuming over 100 cigarettes. Like cigarette smoking, these toxins put shisha smokers at risk of developing heart and circulatory diseases, cancers, nicotine addiction, and other health effects [...] We know it can be hard to stop using tobacco products but help is available. People are three times more likely to successfully quit by using a stop smoking service like Smokefree Oxfordshire ([link removed]) . The service is free to everyone living in the county.”

Source: ITV News, 21 June 2022
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** International
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As cigarette smuggling in Southern Africa becomes big business, researchers have expressed concern that tobacco consumption is increasing in younger people and developing countries. Cigarette smuggling has emerged as one of the most lucrative enterprises between Zimbabwe and South Africa, with border authorities seizing contraband worth millions of dollars in recent years.

In a new report by the University of Chicago, researchers who have created a Tobacco Atlas ([link removed]) after surveying 63 countries say global smokers now exceed 1.1 billion people. While, according to researchers, global smoking prevalence is dropping, from 22.6% in 2007 to 19.6% in 2019, Africa and other developing parts of the world are recording an increase in tobacco consumption, as the tobacco industry targets poor countries with weak regulatory environments,, the report says.

The findings will likely concern African governments where public health services are already struggling. The Tobacco Atlas researchers raise concerns about tobacco-related diseases and deaths in developing countries.

During the launch of the report, Professor Jeffrey Dope, lead author of the Tobacco Atlas and a professor of public health at the University of Illinois cautioned: “The tobacco industry is aware of this. They are working very hard to convince governments that tobacco is very important for the economy. Unfortunately, they're having some success,” Dope said during a Zoom report launch early this month.

One way to deal with the increase in smoking, the University of Chicago researchers say, is combining tackling illicit trade with a raise of taxes on tobacco: “This is so that kids cannot afford to smoke. We know from decades of research that young people are extra sensitive to price.”

The researchers say this has worked in other African countries to stem the illicit cigarette trade, such as Kenya, whose increased tax revenues were reallocated to social programmes such as health and education, among others.

Source: Global Issues, 21 June 2022
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The Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), has on Monday, released a report on how the tobacco industry is using social networking platforms to promote their Corporate Social Responsibility (CRS) activities and evading a ban on Tobacco Advertising Promotion and Sponsorships (TAPS) mandated by the National Tobacco Control Act 2015.

The report, documents how companies such as British American Tobacco Nigeria (BATN), through its charity arm – British American Tobacco Nigeria Foundation (BATNF), Philip Morris International Nigeria Limited (PMINL) and other tobacco entities operating in Nigeria perform visibility activities that polish their images, distance them from the harms of their products, and attract favourable comments on the internet.

The report documented how tobacco companies while embarking on their CSR activities deploy different strategies to gain the affection of policymakers, reflect partnerships and collaboration with state institutions and organisations that ultimately help them build good public ratings.

The Tobacco report which involved research supported by a grant from the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union) on behalf of STOP, a global tobacco industry watchdog.

It researched popular social networking platforms between 2016 and 2021 and flagged 226 activities involving tobacco companies and their allies in Nigeria, exposing growing cases of tobacco industry vendors such as Smoke Box Ng and Da Smoke Hub, allegedly flouting the ban on advertising, promotion, and sponsorships by using their social media platforms to flagrantly market tobacco products, with content showing Nigerian music icons smoking profusely.

The report highlighted existing gaps in the National Tobacco Control Act 2015 and the National Tobacco Control Regulations 2019. The report urged the Nigerian government, amongst other things, to protect public health policy from the influence of commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry in line with Article 5.3 of the WHO-FCTC (World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control).

Source: Arise News, 21 June 2022
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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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