October 27, 2016 — Nicotine is fascinating drug that has been delivered for centuries in a lethal form – tobacco smoke. Along with obesity and high blood pressure, smoking is a leading cause of death and disease around the world. As smoking has declined, obesity has risen. At least some of the rise in obesity rates is attributable to smoking […]
February 18, 2016 — Individually, both nicotine and obesity are challenging subjects where bias creeps in from strongly held views. When they come together, the challenge is compounded. A new analysis published by the National Bureau of Economic Research reminds us that the challenge is unavoidable because significant weight gain is one of the consequences of quitting smoking — […]
October 31, 2015 — Nicotine and tobacco policy is often cited for similar issues confronted in nutrition and obesity. In this guest post, our good friend Joe Gitchell shares his perspective based on decades of experience in tobacco control, bumping into disconnects between science, bias, and policy. Sound familiar? Mitch Zeller, Director of FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, has one of […]
February 22, 2015 — It’s interesting to see purity, pragmatism, and bias collide in public health, whether the subject is tobacco, nutrition, or obesity. One example came in news this week that Reynolds American Tobacco is pushing forward with new plans to develop products designed to help more people stop smoking. Pinney Associates — a Bethesda consultancy that has been at the […]
August 15, 2014 — Who knew that more than 80,000 people would care about FDA tobacco rules? Well, it seems that they do. August 8 was the cutoff date for comments on the FDA’s proposal for regulating forms of tobacco and nicotine like cigars, pipes, and e-cigarettes. The total number of comments has already surpassed 80,000. Now it’s up to […]
