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Dixie County Tobacco Prevention Newsletter
Volume 9, Issue 3 / July - Sept, 2015
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Meet Angie Land, Co-Chair of the Tobacco Free Partnership of Dixie County!
September 24, 2015
The Tobacco Free Partnership of Dixie County has begun the 2015-16 year with several great changes. Jovonte Teague, the previous co-chair has been elected to become the Chair. His dedication to the partnership has been very valuable with his support towards policy changes in Cross City and Dixie County. The partnership also voted Mrs. Angie Land as the new co-chair.
A lifelong resident, Angie Land loves Dixie County and is active in many areas of the community. Dixie County is “home” and where she and her husband Alton met, married and have raised all four of their children.
From the days of being a cheerleader at Dixie County High School to currently serving her community, Angie has been cheering for “Dixie” all of her life.
Angie holds a BS Degree from Liberty University in Religion/Christian Counseling. She works as the Family Life Director for Lafayette Baptist Association, serving as a family and marriage counselor for Dixie, Lafayette, Gilchrist and surrounding counties. She also works with the Dixie County Anti-Drug Coalition as a Project Coordinator, serves as the EMS Chaplain coordinator and serves on numerous boards of community organizations. She also authors a weekly newspaper column called “Heart Matters” carried by several newspapers in North Central Florida.
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Character Community School Starts a New Students Working Against Tobacco Club
August 26, 2015
The Character Community School has joined the Dixie County SWAT Chapter for the 2015-16 School year.
Mrs. Johnnie Grimes, the CCS Administrator, has been active in participating in tobacco free holidays such as Kick Butts Day prior to joining SWAT. Last school year her students made selfie statements in the, “I’m Not a Replacement” Campaign.
Mrs. Johnnie started the CCS two years ago when she realized that there was a need in Dixie County for school choice for a very diverse population of students. The school provides small classes with more one-on-one educational experiences.
Mrs. Johnnie wanted the students to not only receive a well-developed education she also wanted each student to learn about health issues that will help them in their future. The tobacco use issue is one that Mrs. Johnnie has always wanted to address with the students to help them become advocates for them and their family members.
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Should Kids Work Tobacco?
Tracy DeCubellis, MS
August 19, 2015
My great-grandfather was a tobacco farmer. My grandfather was also a tobacco farmer. My father was born and raised on my grandfather’s farm where the tobacco was grown and harvested. Tobacco has always been part of our family culture. In fact, as a child I saw that every adult in my family smoked, or was a former smoker. Car rides and family gatherings were smoke-filled affairs. Tobacco was a way of life for my family, and still is for many of my relatives. Tobacco is culturally accepted in many rural locations, just as in my family, especially in communities where tobacco is grown.
The United States is one of the top five tobacco producing countries in the world. Many children in the United States will work in tobacco fields and barns every year. Florida is not a top tobacco producing state. However, the first reports of illness among children and adolescents caused by nicotine exposure during farm tasks were recorded in Florida back in 1970 (McKnight & Spiller, 2005). This illness is called Green Tobacco Sickness (GTS). It can be characterized by a variety of symptoms including, but not limited to, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, grand mal seizures, weakness, headache, and rash at the sight of contact with tobacco leaves (McKnight & Spiller, 2005).
An article called, There is No Crying in a Tobacco Field, describes the author’s experiences growing up, leaving school, and working in tobacco fields throughout the spring and summer during her early adolescence in North Carolina. Her article is nostalgic as she explains all of the lessons she learned doing hard, dangerous work at such a young age. This may be one of the main reasons that children are still working in tobacco fields today. Besides financial reasons, perhaps parents believe it teaches children to have a work ethic. Unfortunately, like the author of the tobacco nostalgia piece, many children also experience GTS as a result of coming into contact with nicotine in tobacco.
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Carrie Underwood's Controversial "Smoke Break"
Joseph O'Hern, Columbia County Community Health Advocate
September 9, 2015
Hailing from Checotah, Oklahoma it didn’t take long for the judging panel of American Idol to realize that Carrie Underwood had a big voice and an even bigger shot at global superstardom. Coasting through the competition, never finding herself in jeopardy of being eliminated, Underwood went on to win the hearts of America during season 4 of the hit reality show. By doing so she eventually won the title and a record contract. Just ten years later after numerous sold out tours, 7 Grammy Awards, 17 Billboard Music Awards and 13 number 1 singles it’s safe to say Carrie Underwood has a career new artists dream about.
As her professional life became one of legend, her personal life began to flourish as well. After meeting hockey player Mike Fisher after one of her concerts in 2008 the couple hit it off and were engaged in 2009 and finally wed in the Summer of 2010. Fast-forward to Labor Day 2014, Underwood took to her social media to announce to the world that she and her husband were expecting their first child together and eventually welcomed baby Isaiah into the world on February 27, 2015.
Though the industry seemed happy for her success both professional and personal the biggest remaining question was: how long would Carrie take off to focus on family and how long could her career hold on during an indefinite hiatus? Hoping to hold fans over during her time away being a mom Underwood released “Greatest Hits: Decade #1.” The albums lead single “Something In The Water” became a massive hit for Underwood and ended up winning her yet another Grammy Award.
Though “Greatest Hits” gave fans of the country superstar a taste of new music it wasn’t a new album. In fact her last all original album was released 3 years ago. It may not seem like a long time but for an artist whose previous work was known to hit the charts back-to-back it is an eternity. Needless to say fans were quite welcoming when Carrie Underwood took to social media to announce her latest single titled, “Smoke Break” off her upcoming album, surprising music fans and industry people with the fact she was back.
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The Changing Face of Smokeless Tobacco
Tobacco Free Florida
Smokeless tobacco has been around a lot longer than cigarettes, and while many more people smoke, smokeless tobacco is making a comeback. This is partly because smoking has become increasingly shunned and the public is much more aware of the dangers of smoking and of secondhand smoke (SHS) than of smokeless tobacco. As smoking bans have become more common smokers, have turned to smokeless products to maintain their addiction in situations where they are not allowed to smoke.
There are more choices of smokeless tobacco products now. Over the past 10 years, the tobacco industry has emphasized its smokeless products. A ton of new products are on the market and they come in more flavors than ever. Many of these products are more “affordable”; either because the products come in smaller packs or because they’re actually cheaper. These products are being marketed to smokers and nonsmokers alike as something you can do even in places where smoking is banned. The industry is putting its marketing muscle behind these products like never before.
However, there are major challenges for society as smokeless tobacco use increases. Smokeless does not mean harmless—smokeless products are just dangerous in different ways than cigarettes. Another major concern is that smokers may begin to use smokeless tobacco products when they can’t smoke in public, leading to a stronger nicotine addiction that makes it harder for them to quit.
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CVS Celebrates First Anniversary of Removing Tobacco Products
September 3, 2015
We wanted to share some exciting news from CVS Health. As you know, one year ago, on September 3, 2014, CVS Health removed tobacco products from all CVS/pharmacy locations across the country. That was a bold move for the organization, and one that reignited the conversation around tobacco use in the country. And this week, the CVS Health Research Institute has released new data looking at the impact of the tobacco sales removal on cigarette purchases across all retailers. The study found that, in the eight months after CVS/pharmacy stores stopped selling cigarettes, there was an additional one percent decrease in cigarette pack sales in states where CVS/pharmacy had a 15 percent or greater share of the retail pharmacy market, compared to states with no CVS/pharmacy stores. Over the same eight-month period, the average smoker in these states purchased five fewer cigarette packs and, in total, approximately 95 million fewer packs were sold.
To align with the company’s commitment to help make the next generation tobacco-free, the company also announced that CVS Health and its Foundation will launch a school-based, tobacco-prevention program with Scholastic, the global children’s publishing, education and media company. This program will reach nearly three million third, fourth and fifth grade students across the country to teach them about the dangers of smoking and help them understand how important it is to never start smoking.
To learn more about this news, visit www.cvshealth.com. We commend the work of CVS Health and are proud to partner with them in their efforts to help people across the country lead tobacco-free lives.
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Warning Labels and Child-Resistant Packaging on Liquid Nicotine Bottles
A Letter from Florida Surgeon General Dr. John Armstrong
July 22, 2015
There have been a number of media stories recently concerning the regulation of packaging for liquid nicotine intended for use in electronic cigarettes. The rapid increase of e-cigarette use by teens and the number of calls to poison centers involving e-cigarette liquids containing nicotine is an alarming public health concern. The state of Florida urges immediate guidance from federal regulators and calls for increased vigilance from parents, businesses and e-cigarette users to keep these items away from children.
Child-resistant packaging on bottles and cartridges of liquid nicotine used in e-cigarettes and other nicotine delivery devices are necessary to protect infants and children. If swallowed or absorbed through the skin, liquid nicotine can lead to serious illness or even death. In fact, the number of calls to poison centers involving e-cigarette liquids containing nicotine rose from one per month in September 2010 to 215 per month in February 2014, according to a study published last year by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). More than half of the calls to poison centers due to e-cigarettes involved young children under age 5.[i] The number of calls per month involving conventional cigarettes did not show a similar increase during the same time period.
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Boston Bans Chewing Tobacco in Ballparks, Including Fenway
By Felice J. Freyer
Boston Globe
September 2, 2015
The Boston City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to ban smokeless tobacco and other tobacco products at all professional and amateur sports venues — including Fenway Park.
The ban, to take effect April 1, 2016, was proposed by Mayor Martin J. Walsh. It will end the longstanding practice by baseball players with wads of chewing tobacco in their cheeks.
The vote makes Boston the second city to institute such a prohibition, after San Francisco put one in place in January. The Los Angeles City Council is also considering a ban.
“These great baseball cities have set a powerful example that should be quickly followed by all of Major League Baseball,” said a statement from Matthew L. Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
Professional athletes, the statement continued, “are role models for impressionable youth. When baseball stars use smokeless tobacco, the kids who look up to them are much more likely to do so as well.”
Red Sox owner John Henry, who owns The Boston Globe, said in an interview last month that he supports the ban.
Of 58 Red Sox players surveyed during spring training last year, 21 said they used smokeless tobacco.
The Boston ordinance prohibits smokeless tobacco and other tobacco products at sites used for professional, collegiate, high school, and amateur events, including open spaces, enclosed structures, and stadium parking lots. Signs describing the ban must be posted at every entrance and in dugouts, bullpens, training rooms, locker rooms, press boxes, and restrooms. Violations carry a $250 fine per offense.
State law bans smoking in workplaces and public places, including stadiums.
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Booming Vape Shops in South Florida Brace for New Rules
By Jenny Luna
Miami Herald
July 26, 2015
Suddenly, vape shops are everywhere. Just about every strip mall in South Florida seems to have one offering assorted battery-powered tubes and an array of colorful bottles of liquid nicotine. Inside, customers puff out fleeting, white clouds of water vapor as they sample the latest flavors — hazelnut coffee, pineapple cheesecake, peanut butter cup or something called Miami vice.
But the booming vaping business is in for a shock. An industry that has operated essentially without rules faces a regulatory upheaval dubbed by some as the “vapocalypse.” After largely ignoring vaping for a decade, the federal Food and Drug Administration is set to roll out a finalized rule this summer that would treat e-cigs just like real cigs. The same mandates that require tobacco products to include health warnings and test ingredients will apply to electronic cigarettes, vaporizers and the liquid nicotine inside.
Critics of vaping, who are particularly concerned about the appeal of candy-flavored nicotine to teens, say regulations are long overdue. But many in the industry fear the costs of meeting FDA approval will shut down the thousands of independent shops selling what they tout as a healthier alternative to cigarettes.
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/article28764616.html#storylink=cpy
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/article28764616.html#storylink=cpy
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E-Cigarettes Are Turning Into Regular Cigarettes
Dan Vergano
BuzzFeed News Reporter
August 20, 2015
Just as e-cigarettes have become more popular than tobacco cigs among U.S. high school students, a new study bolsters long-standing fears of public health officials: Vaping may spur teens to try tobacco later on.
The study is only the latest hit to the $2.2 billion e-cigarette industry, which over the last decade has spawned about 8,000 vape shops across the U.S. These stores, which sell plastic and metal pens that can vaporize thousands of flavors of nicotine-laced liquids, are currently unregulated. But largely because of health concerns, the FDA promises to soon release rules that would regulate the battery-powered smokes as tobacco products, even though they don’t contain any tobacco.
While vaping has become more popular, teen cigarette smoking rates have dropped precipitously, from 25% of 12th graders smoking daily in 1997 to just 7% in 2014.
Vaping’s rise might sound like great news, as e-cigarettes don’t expose the lungs to tobacco carcinogens. But some public health experts worry that kids will become addicted to nicotine via sweet-tasting vaping, and then later turn to smoking tobacco, which kills about 6 million people every year.
Over the last three years, e-cigarettes have faced a growing patchwork of local regulations, with 371 cities and 22 counties banning them in locations that also prohibit tobacco smoking. California’s legislature, meanwhile, choked on enacting such a ban statewide earlier this month.
The proposed FDA regulations are expected to have much sharper teeth. They could treat each vaping flavor similar to a new drug, forcing manufacturers to conduct proper clinical trials — at a cost of at least $300,000 — showing they don’t impact public health. Industry-funded groups such as the American Vaping Association fear these restrictions will wipe out most shops.
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