Category: Science

  • Nicotine Patches to Be Tested on Coronavirus Patients

    Nicotine Patches to Be Tested on Coronavirus Patients

    Photo: Meryll | Dreamstime.com

    French researchers are planning to test nicotine patches on coronavirus patients and frontline workers following a study suggesting smokers are less likely to catch the virus according to The Guardian.

    The Paris-based study suggests that something in tobacco helps prevent smokers from contracting the virus, but researchers say they are not encouraging people to take up smoking; cigarette smoke causes damage to the lungs, which can cause individuals who have contracted Covid-19 to suffer more severe symptoms.

    Jean-Pierre Changeux, a renowned French neurobiologist, suggested nicotine may stop the virus from reaching cells in the body. Nicotine may also lessen the overreaction of the immune system that has been seen in the most severe Covid-19 cases.

    The results coincide with a Chinese study showing that only 12.6 percent of 1,000 infected individuals were smokers whereas the national smoking rate is around 28 percent. In Paris, 8.5 percent of 11,000 Covid-19 patients were smokers while the total number of smokers in France is about 25.4 percent.

    “Our cross-sectional study strongly suggests that those who smoke every day are much less likely to develop a symptomatic or severe infection with Sars-CoV-2 compared with the general population,” the report authors wrote. “The effect is significant. It divides the risk by five for ambulatory patients and by four for those admitted to hospital. We rarely see this in medicine.”
     

  • Coresta on Track for Vienna

    Coresta on Track for Vienna

    Coresta will hold its 2020 congress in Vienna, Austria, from Oct. 11–15.

    The theme of the congress is “Integrated Science: Opportunities and Challenges,” and it will be hosted by Japan Tobacco.

    The congress will be held at the Hilton Vienna Hotel. Early-bird registration will run through Aug. 5, 2020, and a working program will be available at the end of June.

    “The forthcoming congress is an opportunity for delegates to share their experiences and advancements in science with a focus on opportunities and challenges now and in the future,” Coresta wrote in its newsletter.

    Those wishing to present papers at the congress can submit abstracts through Coresta’s website. Submissions close May 15.

  • Claims About Smoking and Covid-19 Examined

    Claims About Smoking and Covid-19 Examined

    Photo: maja7777 | PixaBay

    Francois Balloux, an infectious disease expert at University College London, says there is “bizarrely strong” evidence for the suggestion, made by artist David Hockney and others, that smoking could protect people against the coronavirus.

    According to an article in The Daily Mail, data from multiple Chinese studies shows that Covid-19 hospital patients contained a smaller proportion of smokers than the general population (6.5 percent compared to 26.6 percent), suggesting they were less likely to end up in the hospital.

    Another study, by America’s Centers for Disease Control (CDC) of more 7,000 people who tested positive for the coronavirus, found that just 1.3 percent of them were smokers—against the 14 percent of all Americans that the CDC says smoke.

    Critics, however, attribute the counterintuitive findings to improper recording.

    “It’s really difficult to assess how well smoking status has been recorded in an emerging epidemic and a lot of these people have been too sick to answer or may not have replied totally honestly,” said Jamie Brown, a tobacco and public health expert at University College London.

    “We know, generally, smokers tend to come from lower income groups, which have poorer access to healthcare and may be more likely to die in the community.”

    Both Public Health England and the CDC have urged people to stop smoking to protect their health.

    “It is abundantly clear from the research into previous coronaviruses that smoking makes the impact of a coronavirus worse,” British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said last month.

    His chief medical adviser, Chris Whitty, added: “If you are going to give up smoking, this is a very good moment to do it.”
     

  • CTFK Wants Vape Shops Labeled as Non-Essential

    CTFK Wants Vape Shops Labeled as Non-Essential

    The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (CTFK) is sending out email blasts urging for a “Call to Action” to pressure U.S. President Donald Trump to label vape shops as non-essential businesses.

    “In a new low, vape shops are lobbying the Trump Administration to be declared “essential businesses” so they can stay open during the COVID-19 crisis. This is ludicrous and we need your help to stop it,” the email begins. “It is the height of disgrace for the vaping industry to argue that e-cigarettes, which damage the lungs, should be considered essential during a lung disease pandemic. It has never been more urgent for us to protect our kids and their health, not vape shops.”

    Some states have labeled vape shops as non-essential businesses. In states such as Ohio, vapor advocacy groups such as the Ohio Vapor Technology Association (OHVTA) have asked its members to close their doors during the pandemic. Ohio, however, allows online sales. Many US states do not.

    Gas stations and convenience stores, where the majority of combustible cigarettes are purchased, are labeled essential businesses. CTFK does not make any mention of asking for businesses that sell deadly cigarettes to be closed.

  • Study: Smokers More Likely to Suffer from Coronavirus

    Study: Smokers More Likely to Suffer from Coronavirus

    A recent study in the European Respiratory Journal shows that smokers and those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are more likely to develop severe coronavirus infections because they have a higher number of the virus’ entry receptor enzyme (ACE2) in their lungs.

    “The data emerging from China suggested that patients with COPD were at higher risk of having worse outcomes from Covid-19,” said lead author Janice Leung, a researcher at the University of British Columbia and St. Paul’s Hospital. “We hypothesized that this could be because the levels of ACE2 in their airways might be increased compared to people without COPD, which could possibly make it easier for the virus to infect the airway.”

    The study found higher levels of ACE2 in individuals suffering from COPD as well as current smokers. The levels in individuals who had quit smoking were similar to those who had never smoked.

  • FDA Extends Comment Period for Information on EVALI

    FDA Extends Comment Period for Information on EVALI

    Couleur | Pixabay

    In response to requests from the public, FDA is extending the comment period for a request for information (RFI) seeking data and information related to the use of vaping products that are associated with lung injuries. 

    The RFI, initially published in the Federal Register on Feb. 18, responds to direction from Congress to gather additional information that could help identify and evaluate additional steps that could be taken by the agency to “address the recent pulmonary illnesses reported to be associated with the use of e-cigarettes and vaping products.”

  • Study: States With Legal THC had Fewer EVALI Cases

    Study: States With Legal THC had Fewer EVALI Cases

    States with laws legalizing recreational marijuana had fewer cases of e-cigarette/vaping-related lung injury (EVALI) than states without such policies in 2019, researchers reported.

    In states that had legalized recreational marijuana, the EVALI case rate averaged 1.7 per million population (95% CI 0.3-3.1), far lower than states where it’s legal only for medical purposes (8.8 per million, 95% CI 5.1-12.5) or completely illegal (8.1 per million, 95% CI 4.1-12.0), reported Alex Hollingsworth, PhD, of Indiana University in Bloomington, and colleagues, according to an article on medpagetoday.com.

    Moreover, the number of cases was significantly lower in states with legal recreational marijuana compared to those where it was not after adjusting for vaping rates (difference 7.2 cases per million, 95% CI -11.8 to -2.6, P=0.003), they wrote in a JAMA Network Open research letter, according to the story.

    “It appears states that have legal access to marijuana have lower rates of EVALI cases, which is consistent with the hypothesis that people have demand for marijuana products, and in states where they don’t have access to them in this regulatory fashion, they end up purchasing them elsewhere,” Hollingsworth told MedPage Today.

  • Philter Labs Gets $1 Million in Vapor Filter Funding

    Philter Labs Gets $1 Million in Vapor Filter Funding

    Philter Labs, a San Diego-based technology company that produces micro-sized air filters to help reduce the impacts of secondhand smoke, announced it has received $1 million in new investments.

    The capital will be used for research and development, building out an extensive product roadmap, and launching what the company says will be first-of-its-kind personal filtration products, according to an article on Benzinga.com.

    This new round of funding brings Philter’s total to $3 million. Bravos Capital and Explorer Equity both participated in the effort.

    Philter Lab’s patented zero-5 technology utilizes a five step filtration process that manipulates smoke and vapor at the molecular level to dissipate up to 97 percent of emissions and dissolve harmful particulates and pollutants. Also unique to Philter is it’s pocket-sized design, allowing for ease of use and portability.

    For over 20 years, the team behind Philter has been working to solve major medical problems, and identify consumer-centric solutions for common issues. Philter also aims to help re-frame popular associations behind controversial human behaviors, according to the article.

    Philter’s technology encourages consumers to practice responsible vaping and empowers them to protect those they love, and the environment, by drastically reducing harmful emissions and airborne contaminants. The company’s overarching mission is to change the way people perceive vaping tobacco and cannabis.

    CEO Christos Nicolaidis told Benzinga the goal at Philter Labs is to eliminate the impacts of secondhand smoke and harmful emissions while empowering consumers to vape responsibly, according to the article.

    “This new series of funding builds on our momentum and will allow us to expand on our scientific research and launch new innovative, cutting-edge filtration products,” Nicolaidis said. “We want to lead the charge on a cultural shift for cleaner air and a better environment — and hopefully change the way people vape for the better.”

  • U.S. House Subcommittee Asks FDA to Ban Vapor

    U.S. House Subcommittee Asks FDA to Ban Vapor

    In what turned out not to be an April Fool’s Day joke, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy, sent a letter urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to use its authority to clear the market of e-cigarettes for the duration of the coronavirus pandemic and use all available tools to encourage Americans to stop smoking and vaping.

    Earlier this week, FDA asked a federal court to delay by four months its order requiring e-cigarette manufacturers to submit applications to remain on the market by May 12, 2020, according to a statement from, according to a statement for the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. 

    The Subcommittee did not oppose this request, but instead asked FDA to take the following steps for the duration of the coronavirus crisis: 

    (1)  use all available tools to encourage Americans to stop smoking combustible cigarettes and using e-cigarettes;|
    (2)  suspend all approvals of Premarket Tobacco Product Applications; and
    (3)  commit to immediately clearing the market of all e-cigarettes by prioritizing enforcement against them.

  • ‘Vaping Increases Covid-19 Risk’

    ‘Vaping Increases Covid-19 Risk’

    The popularity of e-cigarettes is making young people more susceptible to coronavirus than would otherwise be the case, according to some experts.

    New data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that young people may be more impacted by COVID-19 than was initially thought, with patients under the age of 45 comprising more than a third of all cases, and one in five of those patients requiring hospitalization.

    In an updated risk assessment, the European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention included smokers among those potentially most vulnerable to COVID-19.

    The agency cited a study by Chinese doctors which on a sample of 99 patients affected by the coronavirus found that acute smokers were more at risk of dying than elderly people.

    Conventional cigarette smokers are likely to have more serious illness if they become infected with COVID-19, according to the World Health Organization. Because vaping can also cause dangerous lung and respiratory problems, experts say it makes sense that the habit could aggravate the symptoms of COVID-19.