And finally here's evidence our work is paying off.

Cynthia Smith, Project Coordinator
Alberta Heart Health Project
3-18L 410 Agriculture Forestry Centre
University of Alberta
Edmonton, AB T6G 2P5
Ph. (780) 492-6502 Fax: (780) 492-9130
'Building capacity for heart health promotion in Alberta'
www.ualberta.ca/~ahhp/


CDC/Lung Cancer: Anti-Tobacco Measures Lessen Cancer

By Jennifer Coleman / Associated Press Writer
Thursday, Nov. 30, 2000; 4:00 p.m. EST

SACRAMENTO, Calif.  California's tough anti-smoking measures
and public health campaigns have resulted in a 14 percent
decrease in lung cancer over the past 10 years, the government
reported Thursday.

Other regions of the country reported only a 2.7 percent decrease
over the same period, the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention said.

"Based on the California experience, we would hope to see
similar effects in other states using similar programs," said
Dr. Terry Pechacek, CDC associate director for science and
public health.

Lung cancer develops slowly and the full benefits of quitting can
take up to 15 years to be realized. However, Pechacek said,
researchers can start seeing some results within five years.

Smoking rates in California began dropping in the late 1980s,
helped in part by Proposition 99 in 1988. The voter-approved
measure added a 25-cent-per-pack tax on tobacco products
that paid for anti-smoking and education programs. Local
governments also began restricting smoking in public buildings
and workplaces.

Two years ago, voters bumped the price of cigarettes an
additional 50 cents per pack, money also earmarked for
education. And this year alone, the state will spend $136 million
on smoking prevention, cessation and research  some $45 million
of it on anti-tobacco advertising.

"California has the most comprehensive program for protecting
nonsmokers from secondhand smoke," said Ken August,
spokesman for the state health department. "Restaurants, bars
and almost all indoor workplaces are smoke-free."

The effect of the anti-tobacco efforts has been fewer smokers
and fewer deadly cases of cancer related to smoking, health
officials said. August and Pechacek both said they expect the
trend to continue.

August said that means there will be up to 4,000 fewer lung
cancer cases in California this year and about 2,000 fewer deaths.

In its report, the CDC compared cancer registries in California,
Connecticut, Hawaii, Iowa, New Mexico and Utah, as well as
Seattle, Atlanta and Detroit.

In 1988, the lung cancer rate in California was 72 cases per
100,000 people, slightly higher than that of the other regions
studied. By 1997, California's rate had dropped to about 60
per 100,000.

While lung cancer rates for women in the other regions rose 13
percent, the rate for California women dropped 4.8 percent.
Among California men, lung cancer rates dropped 23 percent,
compared with a 13 percent drop among men elsewhere.

Dr. David Burns, a volunteer with the American Lung Association
in California, said: "This is an accomplishment of Proposition 99
money being invested wisely by the state to help people change
their smoking behavior."

On the Net:

CDC: Declines in Lung Cancer Rates --- California, 1988--1997
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm4947a4.htm

California health services agency: http://www.dhs.cahwnet.gov


==============================================
Message Author: [log in to unmask]
To subscribe and/or search archives, go to:
   http://smokescreen.org/?bg-announce
To unsubscribe, send any message to:
   [log in to unmask]
(Note: You are subscribed as [log in to unmask])
==============================================