The New Zealand medical journal
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To estimate the burden of death, disease, and disability attributable to alcohol consumption in New Zealand. ⋯ Five main messages emerged from the analysis that can inform policy to reduce the health burden of alcohol: there are no health benefits of drinking alcohol before middle age; pattern of drinking is an important determinant of health effects; injuries are a major component of the alcohol burden; alcohol use disorders underlie many adverse effects; and the health impact of alcohol falls inequitably on Maori.
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To compare the emissions toxicity of two manufactured cigarette brands, one with and one without a charcoal filter, in the light of manufacturers' laboratory research findings on the properties of charcoal filters. ⋯ Since 1965, major cigarette firms have known from their chemists that many smoke toxicants, including hydrogen cyanide and acrolein, were removable by manufacturing the cigarette with a charcoal filter. To this day, few brands have charcoal filters. The best known, Mild Seven, contained a token charcoal filter only. In neither Japan nor New Zealand did this brand lower cardiovascular toxicant emissions in smoke. In the Smoke-free Environments Act, Government has the power to lower smoke emissions by regulation, but no regulations are in place. The Act does not give power to add filters to cigarettes, but does give power to lower smoke emissions to the level attainable by using a charcoal filter, which could reduce smoke emission toxicity to a large extent. Regulation to require effective charcoal filters is now long overdue.