Facts and Dates About Smoking in the USA

America is and has always been accociated with tobacco just like with Coca Cola. Recall all those old black and white movies and images, where atros and actresses smoke. Cowboys and gangsters always smoked. Let us see key facts and dates about smoking and tobacco in the USA.

1492: Christopher Columbus comes to North America and meets natives who give him dried tobacco leaves as a gift. Natives used them for smoking in pipes.

1612: British colonists in Virginia start to plant tobacco and disover that it is more profitable than other crops. Starting from 1640 tobacco becomes most profitable export of American colonies, with 1,500,000lbs shipped annually from American state of Virginia to England.

1776: Tobacco is the main source of funding of America’s fighters for independence from Great Britain. Thomas Jefferson and George Washington were owners of large tobacco plantations and used these money in the war for independence.

1880s: It is the first time when appear concerns about tobacco use and its effects on health. A number of America's states prohibit sale of cigarettes to teens during the second half of the 19th century.

1900s: Four states banned sale of cigarettes. The organiztion called Anti-Cigarette League of America demands other states to do the same. However, in spite of this, in 1900 there were sold 4.4 billion cigarettes.

1918: After World War I soldiers come home addicted to smoking due to escessive tobacco consumption during the war. This is the first generation of people addicted to smoking. This is the beginning of cigarettes popularity.

1950s: American Surgeon General releases a report which connects smoking to lung cancer and from this time the US government takes first steps to fight tobacco use.

1965: New law imposes that tobacco companies must put health warnings on cigarettes packs.

1970: In the USA cigarettes ads are banned from radio and TV.

1975: Minnesota is the first American state to prohibit smoking in public places. Smokers are moved to designated areas.

1987: Some of American cities prohibit smoking in restaurants.

1990: Smoking is prohibited on domestic flights across the USA.

1993: Smoking is banned in the White House.

2007: The Motion Picture Association of America says that smoking in movies may have an impact on kids.

2011: Smoking is banned in Central Park and Times Square in New York city.

2014: Westminster, Massachusetts discusses the possibility to ban sale of tobacco products in the city.

10 Smoking Rock Stars

Queens of The Stone Age. The photo is made in 2000 in Los Angeles, USA, before release of the second album called 'Rated R'.

Liam Gallagher. The photo was made on March 1996 at the Roxy Theatre, Philadelphia,  before the release of Oasis' second album called '(What's The Story) Morning Glory'.

Jimi Hendrix. The photo was made in 1969 in Copenhagen.

Angus Young, the guitarist from famous Australian hard rock band AC/DC. The image is made in 1995 in Germany.

The Smiths, the English rock band considered most important alternative rock band in 1980s. The image was made in 1986 at Salford Lads Club, Manchester.

Bob Dylan. The image was made in 1966 in Copenhagen during his world tour.

Tom Waits. The image was made in 1979.

Courtney Love recording her solo album in 2007 in Los Angeles, USA.

Paul Weller, the Englich musician who played in the band The Jam. The image was made in 1982, before The Jam split.

Brian Molko, the frontman of most popular English rock band Placebo.

Marlboro Micro Compared to Marlboro Reds

 Fans of Marlboro brand, good news for you. Not long ago Philip Morris launched a variety called Marlboro Micro. Let us take a look at them in my post.

Marlboro Micro are packed in a blue and silver pack whith typical brand logo. First thing you note when you take the pack in your hands it is its size. It is not as large as Reds! The length of the pack is similar to Reds (85mm) but its width is much thinner — Micro has 10mm width while Reds have 23mm. It means that Micro cigarettes are superslim by their shape. The superslim shape makes the pack lighter than Reds and perfectly suitable for any pocket and bag.

When you uncover the pack, you see that cigarettes are placed in only two rows and not in three like in Reds. Such placement may seem quite unusual for Reds fans but soon they will understand it is suitable for superslims. When the pack is already open, you notice extremely white filters and feel a slight smell of tobacco.

Now we will turn to the essence of the subject. To cigarettes.

As it was told earlier in the article, Marlboro Micro are superslims. Their white filters have a perforation line which speaks about duble filtration and at the same time allows to inhale more air, which gives smoothness.

Generally, Marlboro Micro are mild cigarettes with 4mg tar and 0.3mg nicotine. As you know, Reds are strong cigarettes with 10mg tar and 0.8mg nicotine. Micro have a sweet tobacco taste which gives no harshness at all. It means they are perfect for cigarette beginners and those who love smooth smoking. The Micro cigarette burns rapidly but the pleasant tobacco taste remains for a long time. I may say that they are good and have a pleasant taste which you will certainly appreciate!

You may find Marlboro Micro at http://www.dotcigarettes.com/

Are Slim Cigarettes Less Harmful?

My new post comes with good news for smokers. In conditions when the whole world says that smoking cigarettes is bad and harmful, a new study comes with unexpected results that would change people's attitude towards cigarettes.

Recently there was made a study which found that exposure to nicotine and tar is much lower in those who use slim cigarettes than in those who use regular ones.

In the study participated 360 smokers who consumed slim cigarettes and regular cigarettes. Researchers used special devices to determine the amount of chemicals in cigarette filters of the particiapnts and see how much of nicotine and tar they are consuming.

After making all necessary measurements, the researchers noticed that the level of such substances as acetaldehyde,  acrylonitrile, carbon monoxide, nitric oxide, benzene was less in slim cigarettes.  Researchers explain that due to small diameter of these cigarettes the size of puffs is reduced and smokers are less exposed to nicotine and tar.

In some countries slim cigarettes are extremely popular. For example, in Russia and Japan.

The conclusion is simple. If you worry about your health and at the same time like smoking, then turn to slim cigarettes! Many think that slims are only for women, however, this is just a streotype. Slims are for men too.

There are many brands which offer amazing kinds of slims and among famous brands are Davidoff, Marlboro, Virginia Slims, Kent, Winston and even Rothmans with its new Rothmans Demislims Blue and Rothmans Demislims Silver.

Why People Smoke

Numerous studies showed that most people start smoking in their teenage and by age 30 become regular smokers. This occurs because they become addicted to tobacco. Some of them made an effort to stop smoking, but soon began smoking again due to addiction. That is the reason why it is hard to get rid of smoking. It should be said that youth and adults have different reasons to smoke.

Why do teenagers smoke?
1. Well, young people want to smoke in order to look mature. They see that their parents smoke and consider smoking as a commont element of adulthood.

2. In their young age they experiment and want to try different things from curiosity. Forbidden things attract them most and smoking is one of them, for sure. Normally, parents do not allow their kids to smoke cigarettes and they say them It is prohibited! But namely this arises keen interest in them to try it secretly. It is quite exciting for them to get cigarettes and smoke them in a hiding-place without being caught. .

3. One more reason is they smoke just because their friends do it. In a company they do not want to be a black sheep or an object of ridicule, so they do what they friends do.

Why do adults smoke?
1. Smoking helps to releif from stress. A great number of daily responsabilities, money, problems at work or in relationships, health problems and even traffic jams cause stress. Smoking cigarettes is a way to overcome it and smoker becomes relaxed and calm.

2. Smoking helps to control body weight. Studies demonstrated that smokers weigh seven pounds less than non-smokers. Tobacco use reduces appetite and people eat less.

3. Adults smoke just for pleasure. They love tobacco taste and smell. They just love to blow smoke rings.

Hollywood Actresses Who Smoke

Jessica Alba

The actress is a known fan of healthy lifestyle and even owns a company selling natural products. However, sometimes she admits herself to smoke a cigarette. Reporters from "TV Predictions" say that Alba was caught smoking for many times and it seems like the habit is not occasional. In past she tried to quit but we may see that her attempt failed.

Kate Winslet

Kate never denied the fact she is smoking. Moreover, she was never hiding it and did it quite openely. However, each time a tabloid publishes her new smoking images, the public gets shoked. Over and over again. In an inteview to a popular magazine she told that she starts her days from teeth brusing and … smoking a cigarette!


Keira Knightley

Keira is the actress who smokes cigarettes for years and it seems like she does not want to quit!

Some believe that frequent smoking helps her to remain always skinny. Last years Keira was seen smoking inside many public places such as bars and restaurants, and in some cases she was asked to go outside to smoke!


Gwyneth Paltrow

The actress is a famous smoker and was spotted with a cigarette for many times.

She admits she has at least one bad habit and by this is meant smoking, of course.

Though she says she smokes rarely, this habit has nothing to do with her commitment to healthy lifestyle.




 
Kate Hudson
The 35-year-old actress prefers to hide from public her smoking habit, but professional paparazzi like to catch her with a cigarette.

During her pregnancy she refused from smoking and told she plans to get rid of it for good. However, after that she was seen smoking again.





Christina Ricci

In one of her interviews Christina told that smoking cigarettes is her way to escape from problems and she wants to fight it.

But soon she was caught smoking, in spite doctor's recommendations.

Which Countries Smoke Most

1. Serbia
Cigarette use per capita: 2,861
In 2010, the country adopted strictest anti-tobacco measures on Balkans. It was estimated that in Serbia around 33.6% of adults smoke. 

2. Bulgaria
Cigarette use per capita: 2,822
In the country there was adopted a law banning smoking in such public places as bars and restaurants.

3. Greece
 Cigarette use per capita: 2,795

4. Russia
 Cigarette use per capita: 2,786
Only this year Russia started seriously fight smoking with new tough anti-smoking laws. The measure stirred storm of protest from smokers.

5. Moldova
 Cigarette use per capita: 2,479
The country has cheapest cigarettes in the Eastern Europe which makes them available to everybody. Smoking is permitted everywhere and there are no state quit smoking programs. However, this year the Prime-Minister Leanca told that the state will start fighting tobacco use like most countries worldwide.

6. Ukraine
 Cigarette use per capita: 2,401
 Coutries from Eastern Europe have highest smoking rates because governments do nothing to reduce smoking and people are not aware about the effects of smoking.

7. Slovenia
 Cigarette use per capita: 2,369
 Today there are millions of smokers on the planet using around 6 trillion cigarettes annually. The WHO is worried about these numbers and has created various campaigns to fight smoking.

8. Bosnia-Herzegovina
 Cigarette use per capita: 2,278
 The bad news is that population growth worldwide is closely linked to increase of tobacco users.

9. Belarus
 Cigarette use per capita: 2,266
The use of cigarettes in Western Europe has reduced by 26% between 1990 and 2009, but increased in Africa and the Middle East by 57% during the same period.

10. Montenegro
 Cigarette use per capita: 2,157

Most Popular Cigarettes

1. Marlboro Red

Marlboro is most popular cigarette brand worldwide. Surprisingly, it was created for women! Today even kids know what Marlboro is and everyone easily recognizes it from first sight. Tens of years of hard work brought Marlboro success and fame. Hollywood movies also contributed to its popularity and today most smokers choose Marlboros just because it is Marlboro. Marlboro Red is a quite strong version with 9.0mg tar and 0.7mg nicotine. For real Cowboys ;) The brand managed to keep the original design of the package from the beginning till the present days, which makes it most recognizable.

2. Lucky Strike Original Red

Lucky Strike is one of oldest cigarettes brands which was introduced in 1871. The original design of the package differs from the one we see today. It was non-filter but now all its varieties come with filters, as its major function is to make smoking milder. In 1917, the brand began to use the slogan "It's Toasted" to inform smokers about the manufacturing method in which the tobacco is toasted, which made the cigarettes taste more desirable. Lucky Strike Original Red are stronger than Marlboro Red because it contains 10mg tar and 0.8mg nicotine.

3. Winston Classic

The Winston brand was introduced in 1954, and repidly became the best selling brand of cigarettes in the USA. On the peak of its popularity in the 20th century it used slogan "Winston tastes good like a cigarette should". As the manufacturer sponsored cartoon The Flinstones, there were made ads with Flinstones smoking Winston. As to package design, it was modified since its introduction but kept its red and white colors. Winston Classic with its original taste is for true lovers of classics! It contains 8.0mg tar and 0.7mg nicotine.

4. Davidoff Classic

Davidoff is a luxury brand producing cigarettes and cigars for elegant people. Its story begins in 1940s in Switzerland. The brand is named after its creator, Zino Davidoff, who emigrated to Switzerland from Ukraine. The refinement in Davidoff is seen everywhere: from the package to cigarettes themselves. Davidoff Classic is a strong version with 10.0mg tar and 0.9mg nicotine.

5. Camel Filters

The brand Camel was introduced in 1913 and last year it celebrated its 100th anniversary. As all cigarettes of the time, it was without filter. The camel on the package makes it highly recognizable among cigarettes brands. These days classic version of Camel comes with filter but in the same yellow pack with a camel! Camel Filters are most popular among men because these are very strong cigarettes, with 10.0mg tar and 0.8mg nicotine. Just like Lucky Strike Original Red.

Will Smoking be Permitted at 2014 FIFA World Cup?

Well, probably you heard that on June 12 begins 2014 FIFA World Cup, one of most important sporting events in the world. It occurs once in four years and each football fan waits edgily for it in order to support his favorite team. In the World Cup of this year are participating 32 teams from around the world. Only best teams are qualified and those teams choose only best players in order to show best game.

2014 FIFA World Cup will take place in Brazil and will last almost one month. So football fans from around the world will enjoy a whole month of football euthoria! Imagine, the entire world will be captured by that euphoria! People from different contries, having different skin color and age, speaking different languages, belonging to different religions, living in different conditions, from South to Nord, from Est to West, will be fixed on their TVs to find out who is the best football team in the world! The football euphoria will touch not only football fans but ordinary people too, because the euphoria will spread everywhere!

The happiest people will be Brazillians who host the event. They spent millions of dollars to carry honorably the World Cup of this year. Old stadiums were renovated and several new stadiums were built. The biggest one is Maracana in Rio de Janeiro with a capasity of 73,531 people. It will host several matches including the final match on June 13, the most important one, sure ;)

2014 FIFA World Cup will start with a game between Brazil and Croatia, on June 12. This is the day when it all begins!

Now let us turn to our main subject and answer the question related to smoking on the World Cup. If you are a smoker and you plan to go to Brazil to see the world's important event with your proper eyes, you should know that smoking there will be prohibited. The organizers say that 2014 FIFA World Cup will be 100% tobacco- and smoke-free!

The tobacco ban applies to all games that will take place in the World Cup! The ban applies to both outdoor and indoor spaces within the perimeters of every participating stadium. It means that there will be banned sale of tobacco, smoking, tobacco ads and tobacco promotion.

Why they do this?
Well, sport promotes a healthy lifestyle and cigarettes have nothing to do with that. Besides this, there will be a lot of children on the stadiums and the measure will help to protect them from secondhand smoke.

Is it the first sporting event which goes smoke- and tobacco- free?
No. The 2014 Olimpic games were also smoke-free. As to FIFA World Cups, the event became smoke-free for the first time in 2002, when the World Cup was held in Japan and Korea, and since then all next FIFA World Cups are smoke- and tobacco-free.

E-cigs VS Regular Cigarettes

 Today mass media promotes the idea that e-cigs are safe and people strongly believe it. Tobacco companies start to produce e-cigarettes in order to go with the times and satisfy needs of modern smokers. In one of my previous posts I wrote that e-cigarettes are not safe because they contain nicotine which causes addiction.

What to choose: e-cigarettes or tobacco ones?
Let us turn to history. Native American tribes have traditionally grown and used tobacco long before Europeans conquered the America. Tobacco was an important part of their culture. Native Americans are those who introduced tobacco to Europeans and that was almost the beginning of tobacco use by European people.

First tobacco cigarettes as we know them today appeared in France in 1830s. The word cigarette comes from French. In 1845 the French state tobacco monopoly began producing them. However, true tobacco industry has developed in the USA and such brands as Marlboro, Camel and Lucky Strike became popular worldwide.

The major feature that makes regular cigarettes to tasty is tobacco. There are several kinds of tobacco and tobacco makers create unusual and original tastes for their cigarettes by mixing several blends! That is why each cigarette brand is so different! E-cigs have no tobacco and that is why their taste has nothing to do with regular cigarettes.

E-cigs allow you to enjoy only the process of smoking but not the taste. That is why many smokers prefer regular cigarettes to electonic ones. Only with regular cigarettes you may find out what real smoking is. Only tobacco taste gives you that pleasure of smoking. Only these small and beautiful cigarettes packs are cool and attractive.

The argument that e-cigs are safe is nothing but a trap for naive people. Vapor provided by these devices has a number of substanes and the bad news is that providers do not list all of them, therefore no one knows what substanes and in what amount are found there. That fact makes them extremely dangerous, especially in conditions when scientists have not studied all their effects on human body.

So, personally I remain with regular cigarettes with tobacco as they not only provide a real tobacco taste but help me to relax :) And I love those small and colorful boxes as they are stylish! I love my favorite Glamour cigarettes brand which I get from my favorite online cigarette store found at http://www.dotcigarettes.com/

Stop Smoking Now!

According to professor Robert West, a famous expert in smoking and nicotine addiction, you may change your behaviour, way of thinking and learn to control your emotions so that you will quit easy and in a short period of time.

You will stop smoking only in case you really want it, and if you really want it you should manage it by your will power. Establish the day when you are going to start it. Then it is important to tell your family and friends about your quitting plan. Throw away all your cigarettes, lighters and ashtrays. First days and even weeks will be very difficult for you, be ready for it. It would be nice to gather all money you save from buying cigarettes and in the end to count how much money you managed to save.

Quitting is difficult for all, because nicotine causes addiction but tar is a toxic substance to the body. Therefore it is recommended to use nicotine replacement therapy, which today is available in different forms: patch, gum, pill, spray, inhaler and lozenge. Specialists say that nicotine replacement therapies do greatly increase chances of quitting.

There was created a drug called Zyban which helps to remove nicotine withdrawal symptoms for those who quit and helps to increase chances of quitting. This is a medication and it requires a prescription from doctor. One more presription medication is Champix. It binds to nicotine receptors in the brain, stimulates them and then blocks stimulation from cigarettes. It makes smoker experince no  withdrawal symptoms.

During your smoking cessation period it is necessary to get support from other people. They may be your family, friends or other smokers who are quitting too.

It would be very nice to use online tools for smoking cessation! Most of them are absolutely free and available to everyone.

Cigarette Prices in the USA

There are almost 44 million smokers in America and they know that cigarettes in North Carolina are cheaper than in New York.

Why cigarette prices in the USA do vary across states? The main reason for that are cigarette taxes. Governments do increase taxes on cigarettes in order to discourage people from smoking. Besides this, state governments get a lot of money from high taxes.

Generally, experts say that high tax on cigarettes is the best measure to reduce number of smokers in the state, because people do not want to pay a lot of money for a pack of their favorite cigarettes. However, smokers today buy cigarettes online at quite affordable prices. Internet offers a lot of online stores where cigarettes are very cheap!

On the mao below you may see where in the USA are registered high and low taxes on cigarettes. Darker green shows higher taxes.

Cigarette taxes across the American states CLICK TO ENLARGE

You may note that in the USA the highest tax per pack of cigarettes is registered in New York where it is $4.35 per pack. This map includes only state taxes and does not include local taxes, therefore with these additional taxes the picture will be different. For example, local tax in New York city is $1.50 per pack and the final price is $5.85.

Here are the per pack cigarette tax rates:

Quit Smoking with Smartphone

 In 21th century most people use smartphones and cannot imagine their lives without it. Smartphone is more than cell phone, it is like a personal computer — you use it to talk with friends via skype, receive and send e-mails, check your facebook, place images on Instagram, listen to music, make online purchases, read books and magazines, and more. If you want something special, you may always install an app on your smartphone.

There were developed a lot of apps for quitting smoking with various interfaces and options. Some are free, and some are paid. Generally, they provide next information:

    Tips for quitting;
    Information about the health effects of smoking ;
    Time and money you save by not smoking ;
    The number of days added to your life after quitting ;
    Benefits of quitting
    Images of diseased lungs, decayed teeth, cancers;
    Online support  and chat with other people who quit.

Here are three of them:

1. My Last Cigarette
 This is most popular quit smoking app. You should introduce your personal info into My Last Cigarette app and it would create a plan for you. The app shows data updates in real-time and you will always know how well you are doing without your cheap Camel cigarettes. Also it shows motivational messages.medical facts of smoking, and other useful info.

2. QuitSTART  - the App for Teenagers
 This is unique application, different from others with the special approach towards teenagers. Teenage needs are taken into consideration here. The app helps young smokers to recognise smoking triggers and tracks cravings and moods. The app shows teenager's achievements and awards for staying smokefree.

3. Livestrong MyQuit Coach
This free app creates a personalized quitting plan and provides  for the smoker his personal progress charts along with tips and inspirational photos.

Phillip Morris to Produce Marlboro Marijuana Cigarettes

Some time ago I revealed the secret of Marlboro Blend #420 which was believed to contain marijuana. Probably you got upset when you found out that this blend is nothing but a myth. Now things are going to change due to recent legalization of marijuana in Colorado.

This week Phillip Morris, the manufacturer of Marlboro, announced about their plans to start  production of marijuana cigarettes under the brand name “Marlboro M”. The cigarettes will be sold in marijuana-licensed outlets in Colorado and soon in Washington after it legalizes marijuana later this year.

According to Serafin Norcik, Vice President for Marketing for Phillip Morris, the legalization of marijuana opened new opportunities for the tobacco company to start making new products in order to satisfy customers. He told that at the moment they are looking for marijuana distributors in such countries as Mexico and Paraguay, that are world's largest marijuana producers.

As you know, these days in the USA tobacco products are banned from advertising on TV and mass-media, therefore Phillip Morris counts on new marijuana products. The company plans to invest $15 billion in promotion of “Marlboro M” which is going to be released in 2015. Get ready, guys!

Generally, the legalization of marijuana rises more questions. What will be consequesnses of this? Will Colorado become a place for coming numerous marjuana lovers? And now new question appears — will Philip Morris reaaly intends to make cigarettes with marijuana or it is just a joke? Time will show. Till then I will continue to enjoy one of my favorite varieties of Marlboro, Marlboro Reds :)