Feds propose graphic cigarette warning labels

[xg4bx]

RICHMOND, Va. – Corpses, cancer patients and diseased lungs are among the images the federal government plans for larger, graphic warning labels that would take up half of each pack of cigarettes sold in the United States.

Whether smokers addicted to nicotine will see them as a reason to quit remains a question.
The images are part of a new campaign announced by the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday to reduce tobacco use, which is responsible for about 443,000 deaths per year.

"Some very explicit, almost gruesome pictures may be necessary," FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said in an interview with The Associated Press. "This is a very, very serious public health issue, with very, very serious medical consequences," such as cancer, heart disease, strokes and lung diseases.

Feds propose graphic cigarette warning labels - Yahoo! News



yet they keep going after e-cigs. i swear that i'm living in bizarro world sometimes.

if you have a yahoo account, feel free to comment.

 

[Automaton]

They're already doing that in other countries. I saw a lot of it abroad. In Europe and New Zealand, they have the graphic images on cigs. They take up half the front, and the entire back.

Hasn't seemed to make any real impression on smoking rates. In fact, I started smoking abroad, disgusting images and all. It's just another ineffective "campaign" disguised as being to help smokers, when in reality it's designed to build more stigma.

 

[KissMint]

It's been around for more than 3 years in Asia. I still have a pack of Marl lights with guy on a hospital bed with tubes on him.

 

[maxy007]

They are on the packets here as well.
when we used to have slogans on packs of cigs there would be thinks like "WARNING: Smoking kills" or "WARNING: Smoking harms your unborn baby".

If I got a pack that said "WARNING: Smoking kills" I asked them to swap it for one that says "WARNING: Your smoking can harm others"

 

[Papa Lazarou]

They are on the packets here as well.
when we used to have slogans on packs of cigs there would be thinks like "WARNING: Smoking kills" or "WARNING: Smoking harms your unborn baby".

If I got a pack that said "WARNING: Smoking kills" I asked them to swap it for one that says "WARNING: Your smoking can harm others"

Here they started selling "joke" warnings to cover up the real ones - fakefags - we sell ... stickers, smoking stickers, health warning stickers to cover up the health warnings on UK cigarette packets, fake fags cigarette stickers

 

[maxy007]

Hahaha too bad I don't smoke anymore or I'd use those

 

[closetsmokr]

Ok, if they are going to do that, then:
On all moving vehicles, put pictures of really badly wrecked up cars with dead crash victims' photos all over the dash and steering wheel.
On all foods and beverages, put pictures of people with terrible tooth decay and morbidly overweight corpses.
In all showers, put photos of dead women who were hacked up by Norman Bates.
On all Video games, pictures of morbidly obese kids, and people with bags under their bloodshot eyes.

I mean, where does it stop? We make choices everyday to do or not do risky activities (and some things we do almost without thinking - like driving and taking showers). I know, one doesn't HAVE to smoke, but, it's an activity that is legal, and although one hand says, "Stop that! It will kill you!" - the other hand says, "Keep doing that! It makes great tax revenue and provides jobs for thousands of people!" I don't like it... And, as of today, I've passed up over 300 analogs...

 

[Brewtus]

Yeah, when I went to Canada. I saw this on their smokes. It's nothing new... but personally I thinks its a good idea. At least it makes people more aware. But then again, it always peevs me a little bit when big bro has to step in and mandate changes in anything. I think out time could be a lot better spent worrying and fixing other stuff...

 

[FreakyStylie]

Anybody remember Death cigarettes? Yeah, I smoked those, because I was young and they made a distinct point. If there were rotten lungs and what-not back then, I probably would have bought those packs, I don't see how much it will help.

Why don't they just spend the money on doing a legitimate research (say 5 independent labs) on vaporizing, and set up some random shipment tests (not seizures) to make sure we're all getting safe ingredients?

 

[ScotTex]

FreakyStylie:
Exactly, back in the late-80's many of my non-smoking friends would have started smoking if the packs had pictures from the 'Faces of Death' movie or Iron Maiden cover art on them.. the FDA doesn't have a clue, the only reason they have enough time to come up with this crap is they are sitting on their thumbs and making a good living off of all the wonderful taxes.

 

[Automaton]

Yeah, when I went to Canada. I saw this on their smokes. It's nothing new... but personally I thinks its a good idea. At least it makes people more aware. But then again, it always peevs me a little bit when big bro has to step in and mandate changes in anything. I think out time could be a lot better spent worrying and fixing other stuff...

Everyone already knows what smoking can do, in the 21st century. There's anti-smoking ads on TV, I had anti-smoking "sessions" in school periodically, it's covered exhaustively in health classes, and smokers not only getting begging pleas from loved ones, but routinely also get righteous comments just milling around the street. I actually had someone try to hit me when I was just walking by, smoking (cig pointed away from him, holding in smoke until he passed - I always did that).

We know smoking will probably kill us eventually. The gruesome pictures aren't showing us anything new. All they do is increase stigma. Images hold power. The message of these images is violent, and aggressive. As closetsmokr said, I don't see them putting stuff like that on Big Mac's, which are an equally bad method of slow suicide. And the underlying message in that, is that it is ok to be violent and aggressive towards smokers.

Actually there may be one other thing it does, and FreakyStylie eludes to it. They may actually increase the "badass factor" of smoking. Which makes the whole problem worse.

Like I said, I started smoking in a country that had those graphic images on cigs. It didn't make me think twice, even for a second. I knew what smoking can do. A picture wasn't going to stop me.

I have never seen any evidence, scientific or anecdotal, that even suggests that this is an effective tactic. To me, it just seems like more publicly accepted stoning of smokers.

 

[Panini]

I'm from Canada and yeah, they've had those images for a while. If I'm not mistaken, this is meant to meet an international treaty health suggestion (or is it a requirement? Can't remember). According to international studies, it's been shown to increase awareness about the specific health hazards associated with smoking. I'll admit that I know a lot of the statistics and hazards they show by heart now

It didn't bother me. I was already an adult smoker when they changed it and used to specifically exchange the ones showing brain cancer for the ones showing a wisp of smoke. You get used to them and stop "seeing" them. I really don't think it's that big of a deal.

 

[ScotTex]

The only thing that makes it a really BIG deal is, where will they (government-o-mighty) be able to put that huge 'You Suck Loser!' sticker on all of our e-cigs.

 

[Automaton]

I'm from Canada and yeah, they've had those images for a while. If I'm not mistaken, this is meant to meet an international treaty health suggestion (or is it a requirement? Can't remember). According to international studies, it's been shown to increase awareness about the specific health hazards associated with smoking. I'll admit that I know a lot of the statistics and hazards they show by heart now

It didn't bother me. I was already an adult smoker when they changed it and used to specifically exchange the ones showing brain cancer for the ones showing a wisp of smoke. You get used to them and stop "seeing" them. I really don't think it's that big of a deal.

I suppose it kinda depends when you grew up. You certainly don't look out of your 20's to me, but when I was in high school, we regularly had gruesome slide shows of the effects of smoking, some worse than what you see on packs. They even brought in a guy who had a tracheotomy from throat cancer to talk to us, as part of a larger anti-drug week thing.

There's nothing on those packs I didn't already know, having been in school in the 21st century.

Whether all schools do that, I'm not sure. But I also saw some fairly gruesome TV commericials. It's everywhere.

Whether or not it increases awareness, the question is, does it decrease the number of people who START smoking?

I honestly couldn't even tell you what was on those European and New Zealand packs anymore, and I smoked them for a couple years. That's how little of an impact they had. All I can tell you is some of the images - but not the words. I know I read them. But I also know they didn't change my mind.

 

[Panini]

I suppose it kinda depends when you grew up. You certainly don't look out of your 20's to me, but when I was in high school, we regularly had gruesome slide shows of the effects of smoking, some worse than what you see on packs. They even brought in a guy who had a tracheotomy from throat cancer to talk to us, as part of a larger anti-drug week thing.

There's nothing on those packs I didn't already know, having been in school in the 21st century.

Whether all schools do that, I'm not sure. But I also saw some fairly gruesome TV commericials. It's everywhere.

Whether or not it increases awareness, the question is, does it decrease the number of people who START smoking?

I honestly couldn't even tell you what was on those European and New Zealand packs anymore, and I smoked them for a couple years. That's how little of an impact they had. All I can tell you is some of the images - but not the words. I know I read them. But I also know they didn't change my mind.

Let's pretend I'm not out of my 20's

Yeah I'm not personally sure of how effective they are in preventing someone from smoking, because I was smoking long before they introduced them. You point out a good problem with the data from the studies, though. There is a ton of exposure now, in several different mediums, about the negative impacts of smoking. When Canada introduced them, there wasn't as much. So they might have shown some effectiveness then. These days they probably aren't showing anything that isn't already well known.

 

[Automaton]

Let's pretend I'm not out of my 20's

Yeah I'm not personally sure of how effective they are in preventing someone from smoking, because I was smoking long before they introduced them. You point out a good problem with the data from the studies, though. There is a ton of exposure now, in several different mediums, about the negative impacts of smoking. When Canada introduced them, there wasn't as much. So they might have shown some effectiveness then. These days they probably aren't showing anything that isn't already well known.

Ha ha, really? I'm actually surprised. Well, rock it.

Aaanyway.

What I would REALLY like to see is a comparative analysis of why the smoking numbers are trending down, however slowly. Is it from people quitting, or from fewer people starting, or both? Perhaps this study exists - I haven't seen it. But that's the real measure of whether what we're doing is effective.

Obviously, not as many people are picking up smoking as the days when doctors got on TV and said it was good for you.

But the young, lost, and eccentric have always been known for taking all kinds of things into their bodies regardless of the known consequences. If there is an effective way to eliminate that, I don't know what it is.

Which isn't to say we should necessarily give up. But I don't think the kinds of campaigns we have now work. If I could just take a guess at it, my personal opinion would be that the only way to lower the rates of new smokers is to have more broad-range, nonjudgmental open dialogue between parents and kids. But that's not something the government can mandate. And even that is just a guess on my part.

I do know that Europeans smoke more than Americans (27-29% in Western/Northern Europe, 31-37% for Eastern Europe, and 24% for Americans). Europe has the graphic images on cigs, and America doesn't.
Smoking Rates Around the World -- How Do Americans Compare?

That's not exactly a shining endorsement of that tactic.

 

[Antwoord]

For the young people they should put pictures of the Jonas Brothers on a pink background with a few unicorns, and for the older smokers they should use the medical pics. When you buy them the clerk has to sell you the Jonas Brothers Unicorn if you're younger, or the prolapsed anus pack if you're older.

 

[Panini]

When you buy them the clerk has to sell you the Jonas Brothers Unicorn

Maybe it's late...but for some reason I can't stop laughing at the thought of "warning labels" that were just comprised of the Jonas Brothers with zero context behind it.

 

[Automaton]

Now THAT I would vote for.

 

[Antwoord]

I couldn't stop laughing after I realized how funny that was. I needed that lol. Maybe I will write the FDA.