Big tobacco sponsored study raises questions
Quite a few years ago I wrote an article regarding the concept that 3 servings of low-fat dairy a day could help you lose weight. Then it was uncovered that the sponsor of the original study had ties to the dairy industry. Hmmm... makes you pause and think about how unbiased the study was, doesn't it? It's unfortunately the case with a lot of studies. Research is time consuming and expensive, so financial backing is necessary. Often, the finances come from an organization with a vested interest in the result. Any researcher worth his or her salt will perform an unbiased and accurate study regardless of the sponsor, however. And, if the sponsor wants accurate results, they should demand nothing less. Sometimes, however, the sponsorship of a study makes people question the results. Such is the case with a 2006 study that determined lung scans might help save smokers from cancer. Big tobacco indirectly financed the study by making sizable donations (to the tune of 3.6 million) to a foundation that was listed as a sponsor of the study. Researchers properly revealed the study sponsors, but the indirect connection to big tobacco wasn't revealed. At this point, there is no indication that the study's findings are in any way tainted.
With all the recent news on the abolishment of smoking in public places continuing in the media to this day, a new government report states that last year, 
It was amazing to see this pas week that a total of 
Women who smoke while pregnant and then give birth to kids who end up smoking in those hard teenage years appear to have kids who have a 
If you've tried to stop smoking recently -- or are trying now -- you may think that 
Just when you think you're doing something right, it starts to work in reverse. That is precisely what is happening in the effort to curb teenage smoking, as advertising in that arena is no longer being the effective deterrent it once was.
With all the anti-smoking advertisements and other forms of marketing still going strong today, one would think a dent in the smoking population would have been made. Well, it has -- but now it's stalled, in the adult smoking population, that is.
The next time you crack open that new DVD to watch on a Friday night, be on the lookout for new anti-smoking ads that may appear in the preview section before you get to the DVD's main menu. The Weinstein brothers, who own Miramax Studios, have apparently 
I guess it's no surprise that smokers fall victim to various lung diseases -- like lung cancer -- than non-smokers. But, I found it quite starting that 
There are less and less public areas these days in which a smoker can find refuge to indulge in a cigarette or two. Supporters of a healthy environment -- whether in a restaurant, shopping center or just out walking around -- have lauded the state policies that seem to crop up constantly that forbid smoking in certain public places. 
.gif)
.gif)
.gif)
_thumbnail.gif){kind=icon}
America Takes It Off: Weekly Weight Loss #2_thumbnail.gif){kind=icon}
America Takes It Off: Wedneday Weigh-In #2
These healthy foods cost less than a buck
