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Teens are influenced by health risks of smoking  

Teenagers who underestimate the risks of smoking -- or overestimate the social value -- are substantially more likely than their peers to take up the habit, a new study suggests.

Researchers found that among 395 high school students they followed for two years, those who thought the health risks of smoking were fairly low, or the social benefits fairly high, were about three times more likely than their peers to start smoking.

The fact that these perceptions influence teenagers' likelihood of smoking makes sense, but until now it hadn't been clear whether this was the case.

"This is the first paper that really shows that perceptions truly predict behavior," senior researcher Dr. Bonnie L. Halpern-Felsher told Reuters Health.

The findings also show that teens' ideas about the long-term and short- term consequences of smoking are equally important, said Halpern-Felsher, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco.

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Perceptions of Smoking-Related Risks and Benefits as Predictors of Adolescent Smoking Initiation 

Results. Adolescents who held the lowest perceptions of long-term smoking-related risks were 3.64 times more likely to start smoking than were adolescents who held the highest perceptions of risk. Adolescents who held the lowest perceptions of short-term smoking-related risks were 2.68 times more likely to initiate smoking. Adolescents who held the highest perceptions of smoking-related benefits were 3.31 times more likely to initiate smoking.

Conclusions. Smoking initiation is directly related to smoking-related perceptions of risks and benefits. Efforts to reduce adolescent smoking should continue to communicate the health risks of smoking and counteract perceptions of benefits associated with smoking.

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Smoking and Cognitive Decline Among Middle-Aged Men and Women: The Doetinchem Cohort Study  

Objectives. We studied the effect of smoking on cognitive decline over a 5-year period at middle age (43 to 70 years).

Methods. In the Doetinchem Cohort Study, 1964 men and women in the Netherlands were examined for cognitive function at baseline and 5 years later. The association between smoking status and memory function, speed of cognitive processes, cognitive flexibility, and global cognitive function were assessed.

Results. At baseline, smokers scored lower than never smokers in global cognitive function, speed, and flexibility. At 5-year follow-up, decline among smokers was 1.9 times greater for memory function, 2.4 times greater for cognitive flexibility, and 1.7 times greater for global cognitive function than among never smokers. Among ever smokers, the declines in all cognitive domains were larger with increasing number of pack-years smoked.

Conclusions. Interventions to prevent or stop people from smoking may postpone cognitive decline in middle-aged persons.

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Gender as a Moderator in the Association of Body Weight to Smoking and Mental Health  

Results. Relative to their healthy-weight counterparts, overweight or obese men were less likely to smoke, whereas overweight women were more likely to smoke. Mental health problems were not related to relative body weight among men. However, overweight or obese women were more likely than were their healthy-weight counterparts to have a negative self-assessment of mental health, and obese women were more likely to have a mental health problem. In addition, underweight women had increased odds of being a smoker and having mental health problems.

Conclusions. The results indicate that gender has a moderating role in the association between body weight and both smoking and mental health. Gender-specific analysis rather than adjustment for the impact of gender in analyses is a promising avenue for future research.

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Teens Who Brush Off Risks More Likely To Smoke 

Teens who misjudge the dangers of smoking are considerably more�likely to start, a new study announces.

Researchers determined that in the 395 high school students they pursued for two years, those who laughed off the risks of smoking were three times more susceptible than others to pick up the habit.

"This is the first paper that really shows that perceptions truly predict behavior," senior researcher Dr. Bonnie L. Halpern-Felsher said.

The study also indicates that their concepts about the long and brief results of smoking are just as significant, stated Halpern-Felsher, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco. . . .

The study notes that anti-smoking propaganda targeted at teens ought to tackle the immediate risks, Halpern-Felsher noted in the report published in the American Journal of Public Health.

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• Tobacco smoking as a risk factor for major depressive disorder: population-based study  

Results

Among 165 people with major depressive disorder and 806 controls, smoking was associated with increased odds for major depressive disorder (age-adjusted odds ratio (OR)=1.46, 95% CI 1.03-2.07). Compared with non-smokers, odds for major depressive disorder more than doubled for heavy smokers (>20 cigarettes/day). Among 671 women with no history of major depressive disorder at baseline, 13 of 87 smokers and 38 of 584 non-smokers developed de novo major depressive disorder during a decade of follow-up. Smoking increased major depressive disorder risk by 93% (hazard ratio (HR)=1.93, 95% CI 1.02-3.69); this was not explained by physical activity or alcohol consumption.

Conclusions

Evidence from cross-sectional and longitudinal data suggests that smoking increases the risk of major depressive disorder in women.

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A Neuromarketer on the Frontier of Buyology  

It sounds like a cross between "Mad Men" and "Weird Science": using magnetic resonance imaging to study brain waves and determine why people respond to some advertisements but not others. For a 20-year-old junior at Yale, the new field known as neuromarketing is the stuff not of sci-fi mash-ups but a potential career.

Emily Yudofsky has long been interested in behavioral science, no surprise given that both her parents are psychiatrists; her father, Dr. Stuart C. Yudofsky, is chairman of the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. . . .

Current ways to evaluate advertising are significantly flawed, Ms. Yudofsky says. “By going directly to the brain, looking at the regions involved in decision-making, it will make a great difference” in developing campaigns that effectively, say, curb smoking or discourage drunk driving.

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DEAR ABBY: Man disgusted by girlfriend's new habit  

My girlfriend, "Jasmine," has been seeing a therapist to deal with serious depression and anxiety issues, and I think she has done well for the most part.

I am just upset that she has taken to smoking with her co-workers to deal with stress. My mother smokes, and I find it disgusting.

We have discussed this more than once, and she insists that my asking her to stop is "being controlling." . . .

People who reach for a cigarette when they are feeling stressed regard the cigarette as a "friend" they can hold onto. What they don't realize is the cigarette is holding onto THEM -- and occasional smokers become dependent not only on the ritual but also the "drug."

You have a hard choice to make, and so does Jasmine. Perhaps it will be easier if Jasmine does the choosing. Tell her that if you smell tobacco on her hair, skin, breath or clothing, you won't kiss her. If she hasn't quit smoking within 30 days, you'll have your answer.

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Trial Information: Research on ADHD and Smoking 

You may be eligible to participate in a research study on an investigational medication that may help reduce symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and may also help you to stop smoking.

In addition, you will receive smoking treatment using the nicotine patch and counseling.

Patient Inclusion Criteria

Are you a smoker who:

* Wants to quit smoking

* Is 18-55 years old

* Is easily distracted, forgetful, impulsive, and/or fidgety

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Stress Triggers Heart-Damaging Behavior  

Stress increases the risk of heart attack and other cardiovascular problems by pushing people toward bad habits, new British research suggests.

"The study suggests that people with psychological stress had a 50 percent increased risk of a cardiovascular disease event over the follow-up period," said Mark Hamer, senior research fellow in epidemiology and public health at University College London, and lead author of a report in the Dec. 16/23 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. "This increased risk can largely be explained by the higher smoking rates and low exercise levels of individuals who were stressed."

Hamer and his colleagues followed 6,576 participants in the Scottish Health Study, which started with them filling out a 12-item questionnaire designed to measure their general happiness by listing such things as symptoms of depression or anxiety and recent sleep disturbances. About 15 percent of the people in the study were classified as suffering from psychosocial stress on the basis of their answers.

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Depression, anxiety spur poor health habits, damaging heart and blood vessels 

Many people also know about the toxic effects of anxiety and depression. But how exactly do these negative emotions cripple the cardiovascular system--and what can be done about it?

New research published in the December 16/23, 2008, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC) offers some answers. It shows that many people who experience psychological distress also slip into poor health habits, particularly smoking and physical inactivity. Over several years, these two factors alone may account for nearly two-thirds of the risk of heart attack and other cardiovascular illnesses in people with depression and anxiety.

"Psychological distress is a growing problem," said Mark Hamer, Ph.D., a senior research fellow at University College London, UK. "It's very important that physicians try to identify psychological distress, but it's also important to look at the behaviors and the risk factors that are associated with it."

Previous studies have established the link between psychological distress and heart disease, but so far there is insufficient evidence to show that treating depression and anxiety can reduce the risk of heart attack and death. The new research findings suggest a broader approach may be necessary.

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• Letter - Getting Smokers to Quit  

Martin Lindstrom ("Inhaling Fear," Op-Ed, Dec. 12) stakes very large claims on one brain-imaging study ostensibly showing that graphic negative images could encourage smokers to light up. While the sight of a cigarette package has been found to prompt craving among smokers, research suggests that graphic warnings help motivate smokers to quit. That's why so many countries now mandate them on cigarette packs.

Graphic antismoking ads have played a key role in reducing New York City's smoking rate in recent years. When we surveyed New York City smokers who have seen the Health Department's anti-tobacco television spots -- spots that unsparingly depict the health consequences of smoking -- more than half (57 percent) said the ads had increased their motivation to quit.

Since New York City began broadcasting these messages in 2006, the number of smokers calling the city to seek help in quitting has increased fourfold -- reaching more than 50,000 a year. Graphic ads also work to counter the $13 billion the tobacco industry spends annually to portray cigarettes as glamorous. The effects of smoking are ugly; graphic warnings show this reality.

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December 2008 Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource Highlights Happiness, Dementia and Smoking 

Psychological Distress as a Risk Factor for Cardiovascular Events 

Conclusions: The association between psychological distress and CVD risk is largely explained by behavioral processes. Therefore, treatment of psychological distress that aims to reduce CVD risk should primarily focus on health behavior change.

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Lifestyle may be why distress is hard on the heart  

British researchers found that of nearly 6,600 adults they followed for seven years, those who were under significant psychological distress at the outset were more likely to suffer heart problems or a stroke by the study's end.

When the researchers looked at other factors, they found that lifestyle habits seemed to account for much of the link between distress and cardiovascular disease.

"The participants with psychological distress were more likely to smoke and do little physical activity," lead researcher Dr. Mark Hamer told Reuters Health.

The findings, he said, suggest that doctors who are treating people for depression or anxiety should also pay attention to their lifestyle habits -- and, if necessary, help them with issues like smoking cessation or starting an exercise regimen.

Hamer and his colleagues at the University College London report their findings in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

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