This book comprehensively summarizes the adverse effects of tobacco smoking on human health. The current second edition has integrated a large set of new data that have been published in numerous scientifc studies and meta-analyses over the past few years. Unfortunately, the harmful sequelae of tobacco smoking are played down by the ind- try and politicians in many industrialized countries. However, about 800,000 people/year in the EU die from the immediate consequences of smoking. The particularly insidious feature of tobacco consumption is that smoking-attributable harmful effects on health do not generally become apparent until three or four decades after smoking initiation. Although some positive changes in the legislative handling of tobacco have appeared in the past fve years, we still need to form a pact, sealed by politicians, the medical prof- sionals, teachers and the media, to target the problem across nations. In this respect, a minority of countries, including the US and the UK, have given positive examples. There are four areas that need to be improved in future: (1) strict bans on tobacco adv- tisement on a global level, (2) better measures to protect against side-stream (passive) smoke exposure, (3) establishment of prevention programs, especially for children and (4) tre- ment of tobacco addiction.
Tobacco or Health? Knut-Olaf Haustein† • David Groneberg Tobacco or Health? Second Edition Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. David Groneberg Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin Institut für Arbeitsmedizin Thielallee 73 14195 Berlin Germany
[email protected] Prof. Dr. Knut-Olaf Haustein† Fritz-Lickint-Institut für Nikotinforschung und Raucherentwöhnung Johannes Str. 85–87 99084 Erfurt Germany ISBN: 978-3-540-87576-5 e-ISBN: 978-3-540-87577-2 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-540-87577-2 Springer Heidelberg Dordrecht London New York Library of Congress Control Number: 2009931695 © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilm or in any other way, and storage in data banks. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the German Copyright Law of September 9, 1965, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Violations are liable to prosecution under the German Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. Product liability: The publishers cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information about dosage and application contained in this book. In every individual case the user must check such information by consulting the relevant literature. Cover design: eStudioCalamar, Figueres/Berlin Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) Dedication This book is dedicated to all the unborn who suffer from the negative effects of tobacco. They cannot protect themselves, and often, they suffer a lifetime. v Preface This book comprehensively summarizes the adverse effects of tobacco smoking on human health. The current second edition has integrated a large set of new data that have been published in numerous scientific studies and meta-analyses over the past few years. Unfortunat