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Smoking ban sees tobacco sales drop
29/06/2004 - 13:26:09
The sale of tobacco dropped following the introduction of the smoking-ban in the workplace, an international tobacco company revealed today.
The Gallagher Group said the amount of tobacco sold in Ireland in the first five months of this year had dropped by 9.3% due to inflation costs.
A statement from the firm said: “There are signs of some initial volume impact from the ban on smoking in the workplace, which came into force at the end of March.
“It is too early to assess the extent to which this reduction is due to short-term changes in trade buying patterns or to longer term changes in consumption.”
A trading update from the company put the 9.3% drop down to inflation duty increases which affected the affordability of products and hit border trade.
“The level of non-duty paid volume in the Republic of Ireland is expected to increase as a result of this taxation policy,” the Gallagher Group said.
At the end of last year the Government’s Budget pushed the price of a pack of cigarettes up by 25 cent, with measured increases on other tobacco products.
The increase in the price of 20 cigarettes meant a 4.3% rise, which was two points above the current rate of inflation of 2.3%.
The group, which produces cigarettes, cigar, pipe and handrolling tobacco products, said the amount of tobacco sold had increased by 6% during the first five months.
The trading update showed conditions in Europe have been difficult, with Austria, France and Germany experiencing declines due to disruption from increased taxation and cross-border trade.
. I wonder are the habits of a certain Scottish Socialist Doctor captured in the statistics.Mortality in relation to smoking: 50 years' observations on male British doctor
Smoking ban a success, research shows
28/06/2004 - 15:01:08
The vast majority of consumers in Ireland feel the smoking ban has been a success with 89% stating that the ban has worked, 10% believing it has been unsuccessful and 2% saying they didn’t know.
Recent research by Amárach consulting showed that there are over one million smokers across the island, with 26% of the population classifying themselves as smokers.
The majority of smokers tended to be in the 25-50 year old bracket, with only 10% of those over 65 regarding themselves as regular smokers.
Of those that smoked, 46% were male and 54% female. Smoking was skewed towards social class, with 17% of professionals classifying themselves as smokers versus 31% of those in semi-skilled or unskilled labour.
3. There seems to be no correlation between smoking and high/low blood pressure
One swallow does not make a summer. Smoking is recognised as one of the leading causes of high blood pressure (along with excessive weight, lack of exercise, salt) in every other medical study. The absence of coorelation in this particular study does not negate that accepted fact.There seems to be no correlation between smoking and high/low blood pressure
.Facts
Smoking is a major health hazard. This is mainly because tobacco contains carcinogens, substances such as tar and benzene that increase the risk of cancer developing in the body.
In 1998 a government white paper on smoking stated that 46,500 people in the UK die every year as a result of smoking-related cancer.
The chemicals in tobacco also cause cardiovascular conditions such as heart disease and circulatory disorders. The heart and the circulatory system pump blood and oxygen around the people, which is needed to keep body tissue alive and healthy.
The government white paper on smoking found that over 40,000 deaths a year due to circulatory diseases are caused by smoking.¹The financial cost to the NHS of treating smoking-related diseases, including visits to the doctor, prescriptions and operations, is around £1.7 billion per year
I'm not clear what you are saying - Are you telling us that you believe that smoking isn't a cause of high blood pressure?I am only commenting on this (BMJ June 2004) study, so your crititism is somewhat misplaced. You, on the other hand are not commenting on any particular study... go figure.
THE CAUSES OF HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
A blood pressure reading of 140/90 mmHg or above is normally considered to be high. High blood pressures are quite common in the UK, with as many as a quarter of adults affected and the prevalence of high blood pressure (or hypertension) significantly increases with age.
This rise in blood pressure with age was once thought to be 'normal', a natural process that occurred as we age. It has since been proven that this is not the case. It has been seen many times that blood pressures in economically undeveloped communities (for example Amazonian Indians) are lower than in developed countries such as the UK and do not increase with age
What's behind high blood pressure?
Hypertension can be caused by several conditions, including kidney problems, hormonal disorders and even pregnancy! In the vast majority (over 95%) of cases, however, the reason behind high blood pressure is not known People in this situation are said to be suffering from primary hypertension (also called essential hypertension).
The immediate cause of high blood pressure in primary hypertension is a narrowing of the arteries - this increases the resistance that the heart is pumping against and raises blood pressure. It is much harder, however, to say exactly what causes the arteries to become narrower.
Studies over recent decades have identified several factors which are associated with high blood pressures and may go some way toward explaining primary hypertension. These factors are both genetic and to do with our lifestyles.
Many studies have found blood pressures to be higher and hypertension to be more common in people of Afro-Caribbean descent. Average differences in blood pressure between African-Americans and whites are as large as 20mmHg by 60 years of age. Afro-Caribbeans in the UK and the USA are also more likely to suffer from stroke, for which hypertension is an important risk factor. It is therefore particularly important that Afro-Caribbeans have their blood pressure checked regularly by their GP and take steps to keep their blood pressure low.
Type II diabetes (also called maturity onset diabetes) is also strongly associated with having a higher blood pressure, and diabetics should have their blood pressures closely monitored.
But there are also many lifestyle factors which can influence blood pressure regardless of your genes, so whoever you are, you can influence your own blood pressure. The most important lifestyle factors to be aware of are:
Your diet
Several parts of the diet are linked to blood pressure, the most important being salt. It is fairly safe to say that everyone in the UK eats too much salt and this has an important impact on the nation's blood pressure!
Too much alcohol can also increase blood pressure.
On the plus side, however, it has been suggested that potassium may help lower blood pressure. Fruits and vegetables are a very good source of potassium and studies have found that vegetarians have lower than average blood pressures.
Smoking
If you do, stop! Although smoking is not independently associated with high blood pressure, people with hypertension who also smoke have 2 to 3 times as much heart disease as hypertensives who don't smoke.
Your weight
The higher your weight, the more likely you are to have high blood pressure; an increase in weight of 10kg is associated with an increase of 2-3mmHg in systolic blood pressure. It is therefore very important to try and maintain an appropriate weight for your height. Regular physical activity can help you achieve this, and will also help lower your blood pressure, whatever your weight.
Stress
The relationship between stress and heart disease is very difficult to study as it is hard to define exactly what stress is and more evidence is needed before the relationship between stress, blood pressure and heart disease is fully understood. It has been seen in the UK, however, that lower grade employees have higher blood pressures than the higher grade executives in the same workplace. It is thought that having little control over your job may cause 'stress' and increase blood pressure.
Knowing about some of the things which are behind high blood pressure means you can take effective steps to keep your blood pressure from rising and help you to lower it if you have high blood pressure
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