National News Roundup
Schools, parents, and the federal government should take aggressive action to prevent children from becoming addicted to cigarettes, a report from the Institute of Medicine urged last week.
The authors of the 299-page report from the institute, an advisory group to the National Academy of Sciences, estimate that one million young people become regular smokers each year. Smoking, they say, lowers young people's life expectancy by an average of 15 years.
To help curb the habit, the report recommends a federal, $2-per-pack tax increase on cigarettes. Cigarette-vending machines should be eliminated, schools should adopt smoke-free policies, and tobacco advertising that targets young people should be also curtailed, the report says.
Copies of the report, "Growing Up Tobacco Free," are available for $24.95 each plus $4 for shipping from the National Academy Press, 2101 Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20418; (202) 334-3313.
Vol. 14, Issue 03