2006-03-19T14:24:00.000-08:00

Surgeon General's Report Expands List of Diseases Caused by
SmokingThursday May 27, 2004

U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona today released a new comprehensive
report on smoking and health, revealing for the first time that smoking causes
diseases in nearly every organ of the body. Published 40 years after the surgeon
general's first report on smoking -- which concluded that smoking was a definite
cause of three serious diseases -- this newest report finds that cigarette
smoking is conclusively linked to diseases such as leukemia, cataracts,
pneumonia and cancers of the cervix, kidney, pancreas and stomach.

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"We've known for decades that smoking is bad for your health, but this report
shows that it's even worse than we knew," Dr. Carmona said. "The toxins from
cigarette smoke go everywhere the blood flows. I'm hoping this new information
will help motivate people to quit smoking and convince young people not to start
in the first place."

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According to the report, smoking kills an estimated 440,000 Americans each year.
On average, men who smoke cut their lives short by 13.2 years, and female
smokers lose 14.5 years. The economic toll exceeds $157 billion each year in the
United States -- $75 billion in direct medical costs and $82 billion in lost
productivity.

"We need to cut smoking in this country and around the world," HHS Secretary
Tommy G. Thompson said. "Smoking is the leading preventable cause of death and
disease, costing us too many lives, too many dollars and too many tears. If we
are going to be serious about improving health and preventing disease we must
continue to drive down tobacco use. And we must prevent our youth from taking up
this dangerous habit."

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In 1964, the Surgeon General's report announced medical research showing that
smoking was a definite cause of cancers of the lung and larynx (voice box) in
men and chronic bronchitis in both men and women. Later reports concluded that
smoking causes a number of other diseases such as cancers of the bladder,
oesophagus, mouth and throat; cardiovascular diseases; and reproductive effects.
Today's new report, The Health Consequences of Smoking: A Report of the Surgeon
General, expands the list of illness and conditions linked to smoking. The new
illnesses and diseases are cataracts, pneumonia, acute myeloid leukemia,
abdominal aortic aneurysm, stomach cancer, pancreatic cancer, cervical cancer,
kidney cancer and periodontitis.

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Statistics indicate that more than 12 million Americans have died from smoking
since the 1964 report of the surgeon general, and another 25 million Americans
alive today will most likely die of a smoking-related illness.

The report's release comes in advance of World No Tobacco Day, an annual event
on May 31 that focuses global attention on the health hazards of tobacco use.
The goals of World No Tobacco Day are to raise awareness about the dangers of
tobacco use, encourage people not to use tobacco, motivate users to quit and
encourage countries to implement comprehensive tobacco control programs.

The report concludes that smoking reduces the overall health of smokers,
contributing to such conditions as hip fractures, complications from diabetes,
increased wound infections following surgery, and a wide range of reproductive
complications. For every premature death caused each year by smoking, there are
at least 20 smokers living with a serious smoking-related illness.

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Another major conclusion, consistent with recent findings of other scientific
studies, is that smoking so-called low-tar or low-nicotine cigarettes does not
offer a heath benefit over smoking regular or "full-flavor" cigarettes.

"There is no safe cigarette, whether it is called 'light,' ultra-light,' or any
other name," Dr. Carmona said. "The science is clear: the only way to avoid the
health hazards of smoking is to quit completely or to never start smoking."

The report concludes that quitting smoking has immediate and long-term benefits,
reducing risks for diseases caused by smoking and improving health in general.
"Within minutes and hours after smokers inhale that last cigarette, their bodies
begin a series of changes that continue for years," Dr. Carmona said. "Among
these health improvements are a drop in heart rate, improved circulation, and
reduced risk of heart attack, lung cancer and stroke. By quitting smoking today
a smoker can assure a healthier tomorrow."

Dr. Carmona said it is never too late to stop smoking. Quitting smoking at age
65 or older reduces by nearly 50 percent a person's risk of dying of a
smoking-related disease.

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