Smoking ban now in effect at ASU's campuses

A smoking ban has gone into effect at Arizona State University's campuses.
But how it will be enforced and how violators will be punished remains unclear.
The Arizona Republic  says the ban prohibits smoking and the use of smokeless tobacco at all ASU's properties including the main campus in Tempe and all other campuses in the Phoenix metropolitan area.
The policy also applies to privately owned vehicles in the university's parking lots and garages as well as property leased by the school.
Before the ban took effect Thursday, people could smoke outside of buildings at ASU as long as they were 25 feet from entrances.
ASU campus police say officers won't be fining or arresting people who violate the ban, but they'll let smokers know about the new restrictions.

Black diabetic smokers face major concerns about their health

Another major health concern has arose for diabetic tobacco users, especially for African-Americans. Those who have been diagnosed with diabetes and are smokers should know the health risks they face.
According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), diabetes is a group of diseases with high blood glucose levels resulting from a defect in the body’s ability to produce and use insulin.

The ADA found that African-Americans are disproportionately affected by diabetes compared to the general population. They are 1.8 times more likely than whites to have diabetes. This is caused by the food selection and obesity rates of African-Americans.

Alexander Local Schools says 'No Smoking'

Starting this upcoming school year, Alexander Local School District will be implementing a 100 percent tobacco-free policy, making the district one of only a few in Ohio to adopt the practice.
The policy is based on guidelines created by the Ohio Department of Health’s Tobacco Use and Prevention Program. The coordinator of the program, Kim Knapp-Browne, began meeting with Jeff Cullum, the district’s superintendent, earlier this year.

When celebrities shilled for cigarettes

Remember when President Obama was trying to quit smoking? Updates of his progress were doled out to the White House press corps alongside world-moving news of war, the economy, and health care reform.
These days, more and more smokers, especially public figures, are shamed out of the unhealthy habit. But 60 years ago, celebrities were often the face of cigarettes, shilling for their favorite brands like smokes were just another household item. Here are three such vintage ads featuring three very proud, very famous, smokers.

If parents ever smoked, teens may be more likely to light up

Teens of a parent who smoked -- even if the mother or father quit before the teen was born -- are more likely to smoke than those whose parents are nonsmokers, a new study finds.
Having an older brother or sister who smokes also raises the odds that a teen will pick up the habit, the researchers report.
"These findings imply that any amount of smoking could have important influences on the next generation," said lead researcher Mike Vuolo, an assistant professor of sociology at Purdue University. "Given the influence on the oldest siblings, this is especially the case in heavy-smoking households."
Vuolo and co-author Jeremy Staff, an associate professor of sociology at Pennsylvania State University, analyzed data from a multigenerational study that has followed participants since 1988, when they were freshmen in high school, to 2011. They focused on 214 now-parents and 314 of their children aged 11 and older.