AP: Marlboro Man Eric Lawson Dies From Smoking Related Disease At Age 72

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Eric Lawson, a working actor who portrayed the Marlboro Man in cigarette ads during the late 1970s, has died. He was 72.


Lawson’s wife, Susan Lawson, said Sunday that her husband died Jan. 10 at his California home. The cause was respiratory failure due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD.


The ruggedly handsome Lawson portrayed the smoking cowboy in Marlboro print ads from 1978 to 1981. He also had bit parts in such TV shows as “Baretta” and “Charlie’s Angels” before injuries sustained on the set of a Western film ended his acting career.

A smoker since age 14, Lawson later appeared in an anti-smoking commercial that parodied the Marlboro Man and an “Entertainment Tonight” segment to discuss the negative effects of smoking.

He is also survived by six children. 

American Society of Addiction Medicine Reacts to CNN’s “WEED”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
Contact: Alexis Geier Horan, ageier@asam.org, 202-276-7873 


American Society of Addiction Medicine Reacts to CNN’s “WEED” 

CHEVY CHASE, MD, AUGUST 12, 2013 – The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) expresses its concern that the CNN documentary “Weed”, hosted by Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, may mislead Americans about the “medical” nature of smoked marijuana. 

ASAM, the largest American medical professional society dedicated to the treatment and prevention of addiction, issued a white paper in 2011 that examined the therapeutic potential of cannabis and the role that Medicine, in particular, physicians, play in the delivery of “medical” marijuana. In short, there is some evidence that the cannabis in marijuana has certain palliative properties when it interacts with the body’s endocannabinoid receptor system. However, cannabis used for medicinal purposes is neither standardized nor quality-controlled. Furthermore, it is typically smoked which is not a safe means of drug delivery. 

“Dr. Gupta is a respected physician, recognized by many as a medical authority, “offers Dr. Stuart Gitlow, MD, ASAM President. “We are concerned that his endorsement of marijuana as medicine may support the idea that smoked marijuana is safe and non-addictive.” Neither notion is supported by research. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, marijuana is an intoxicating drug that impairs memory, motor function, and, when smoked, respiratory health. And, for nearly one in ten habitual users, marijuana is addictive. 

“I see more and more patients who regularly use marijuana and many of them are young people”, reflects Dr. Gitlow. “They think marijuana is harmless because it’s ‘medicine’.” In fact, according to the 2011 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (SAMHSA, 2011), the decreasing perception among youths of risk of smoking marijuana from 2007 to 2011 is consistent with the increase in past month marijuana use among youths between 2007 and 2011 (7.9 percent reported using marijuana in the past month in 2011 versus 6.7 percent reporting use in 2007). 

ASAM encourages an open and balanced dialogue about the possible benefits and risks of marijuana and is grateful to CNN and Dr. Gupta for advancing this discussion. “Marijuana may prove to have some clinical applications,” says Dr. Gitlow. “But, until and when high quality scientific research supports that and the drug is subject to the same standards that are applicable to other prescription medications, marijuana cannot be called “medical.” 


The American Society of Addiction Medicine is a national medical specialty society of over 3,000 physicians. Its mission is to increase access to and improve the quality of addiction treatment, to educate physicians, and other health care providers and the public, to support research and prevention, to promote the appropriate role of the physician in the care of patients with addictive disorders, and to establish Addiction Medicine as a specialty recognized by professional organizations, governments, physicians, purchasers and consumers of health care services and the general public. ASAM was founded in 1954, and has had a seat in the American Medical Association House of Delegates since 1988. 

Lets Hope we don't have to learn from Marijuana what we had to learn from Tobacco

When You Quit Smoking, Your Chances at Life get Better and Better

NADCP Releases Position Statement on Marijuana

Review of Research Leads to Stand Against Marijuana Legalization of the use of Smoked Marijuana as “Medicine”

 

Every dangerous and addictive drug was once believed to be safe and medicinal.  Cocaine, heroin and nicotine were once advertised as being good for you, or at least not harmful.  In every instance, we learned otherwise -- the hard way.  Marijuana is the newest “safe” and “medicinal” drug to reenact this tragic drama.  Just as scientific research is documenting the unequivocal public-health and public-safety dangers of marijuana, states are moving rapidly towards legalization or decriminalization.

 

Drug Courts serve seriously addicted individuals with long criminal records who have alienated nearly everyone they love.  In every case, they tell us it began with marijuana.  Convinced that marijuana was safe, they learned it is, in fact, addictive, causes serious cardiovascular and respiratory disease, triggers mental illness and addiction to more serious drugs, and alienates friends, family and coworkers.

 

NADCP has long been committed to guiding the Drug Court field and the broader criminal justice and treatment communities with science, not ideology.  After thoroughly reviewing the research regarding the safety of recreational marijuana use and the efficacy of “medical” marijuana, NADCP unequivocally stands against the legalization of marijuana and the use of smoked marijuana as “medicine.”  Our reasons for doing so are thoroughly explained and cited in the attached Position Statement.

 

Unfortunately, the public discourse concerning drug policy in the U.S. has degenerated into a false-choice between incarceration and legalization.  Both of these extreme positions are dangerous, costly and ineffective.  But research proves there is a middle ground.  It is possible to reduce the devastating consequences of addiction and treat those already affected without overreacting and wasting public tax dollars. 

 

Pick up any current issue of a scientific journal in the fields of psychology, psychiatry, counseling or criminology, and you will find studies documenting a new danger of marijuana.  But that same journal will also contain studies documenting the curative effects of Drug Courts and dozens of other treatment programs.  We can and must do better.  Science, not ideology, must be our guide to rational and informed public policy.

 

 

West Huddleston

CEO

National Association of Drug Court Professionals

- National Center for DWI Courts

- National Drug Court Institute

- Justice for Vets

AHA: Smoking Marijuana Associated with Higher Stroke Risk in Young Adults

February 06, 2013 

This news release is featured in a news conference at 7 a.m. HT, Wednesday, Feb. 6.

Study Highlights:

• Marijuana use may double the risk of stroke in young adults.
• The New Zealand findings are the first from a case-controlled study to indicate a potential link between marijuana and stroke.

HONOLULU, Feb. 6, 2013 —Marijuana, the most widely used illicit drug, may double stroke risk in young adults, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference 2013.

In a New Zealand study, ischemic stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA) patients were 2.3 times more likely to have cannabis, also known as marijuana, detected in urine tests as other age and sex matched patients, researchers said.

“This is the first case-controlled study to show a possible link to the increased risk of stroke from cannabis,” said P. Alan Barber, Ph.D., M.D., study lead investigator and professor of clinical neurology at the University of Auckland in New Zealand. “Cannabis has been thought by the public to be a relatively safe, although illegal substance. This study shows this might not be the case; it may lead to stroke.”

The study included 160 ischemic stroke/TIA patients 18-55 years old who had urine screens upon admission to the hospital. Among the patients, 150 had ischemic stroke and 10 had TIAs. Sixteen percent of patients had positive drug screens, mostly male who also smoked tobacco.

Only 8.1 percent of controls tested positive for cannabis in urine samples. Researchers found no differences in age, stroke mechanism or most vascular risk factors between marijuana users and non-users.

In previous case reports, ischemic stroke and TIAs developed hours after cannabis use, Barber said. “These patients usually had no other vascular risk factors apart from tobacco, alcohol and other drug usage.”

It’s challenging to perform prospective studies involving illegal substances such as cannabis because “questioning stroke and control patients about cannabis use is likely to obtain unreliable responses,” Barber said.

In the study, the regional ethics committee allowed researchers to use urine samples from other hospitalized patients. But researchers knew only the age, sex and ethnicity for matching due to a lack of consent.

The study provides the strongest evidence to date of an association between cannabis and stroke, Barber said. But the association is confounded because all but one of the stroke patients who were cannabis users also used tobacco regularly.

“We believe it is the cannabis and not tobacco,” said Barber, who hopes to conduct another study to determine whether there’s an association between cannabis and stroke independent of tobacco use. “This may prove difficult given the risks of bias and ethical strictures of studying the use of an illegal substance,” he said. “However, the high prevalence of cannabis use in this cohort of younger stroke patients makes this research imperative.”

Physicians should test young people who come in with stroke for cannabis use, Barber said.

“People need to think twice about using cannabis,” because it can affect brain development and result in emphysema, heart attack and now stroke, he said.

Co-authors are: Heidi Pridmore, M.D.; Venkatesh Krishnamurthy, M.D.; Sally Roberts, M.D.; David A. Spriggs, M.D.; Kristie Carter, Ph.D.; and Neil E. Anderson, M.D. Author disclosures and funding information are on the abstract.

Follow news from the ASA International Stroke Conference 2013 via Twitter @HeartNews; #ISC13.

Statements and conclusions of study authors that are presented at American Stroke Association scientific meetings are solely those of the study authors and do not necessarily reflect association policy or position.  The association makes no representation or warranty as to their accuracy or reliability. The association receives funding primarily from individuals; foundations and corporations (including pharmaceutical, device manufacturers and other companies) also make donations and fund specific association programs and events.  The association has strict policies to prevent these relationships from influencing the science content.  Revenues from pharmaceutical and device corporations are available atwww.heart.org/corporatefunding.

Hey Madonna: It's Okay to Say "I'm an Idiot for having Promoted Smoking Cigarettes!" So, PLEASE DON'T SMOKE!!!

Madonna Threatens Fans Over Cigarettes -- If You Smoke, I'll CANCEL My Concert!!! - Watch More Celebrity Videos or Subscribe

Photo Source:  dailymail.co.uk

Film Review: Lifetime “Liz & Dick,” a Recipe for Lindsay Lohan to Relapse

Last night’s world-premier of the long-awaited Lifetime biopic “Liz & Dick” starring Lindsay Lohan and Grant Bowler, was the most insensitive portrayal of a Hollywood movie star I have ever seen!  My outrage is not about how Elisabeth Taylor was portrayed however, but rather how producers used Lindsay Lohan and her life of struggle with addiction to market the film.  In short, what we saw last night looked like the story of Elisabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, but sounded like the story of a nasal, raspy-voiced teenager pained by lovelessness.

For one, I congratulate Lindsay for keeping her end of the bargain and finishing the film.  If I had a word of advice for the producers, the lack of interest in getting Lindsay voice trained for this role is quite pathetic.  For the kind of low-budget film this was, even Elisabeth Taylor who herself was sober and was surely turning over in her grave last night, would have said that Lindsay was the only draw for people to see this film and for all the wrong reasons.

Message to the producers and marketing department of “Liz & Dick:  Using a person’s personal tragedy and affliction to humiliate them and exploit them to make money is reprehensible!  Lindsay Lohan is struggling to stay sober and the producers of “Liz & Dick” asked Lindsay to smoke like a chimney, pretend she was an out of control drunk, knowing she was struggling to get sober and even act out a part of attempted suicide by prescription drug overdose!  There is nothing more psychologically harmful I can think of, that would cause a person to relapse back into addiction than this.  Given all the psychological grief this film probably caused Lindsay Lohan, it is a miracle she did not relapse and kill herself. 

Lesson:  Among other things, addiction is about triggers.  It’s about conflict and inner trauma.  Addiction causes PTSD in people and it stays with some people even after they achieve long term sobriety.  Never assume it is okay to let someone who is struggling to get sober drink or use.  NEVER.  

In case you may think we haven’t been here before, Heath Ledger’s death and the life he lived right before his death will tell a story few bother to research or talk about.  The fact of the matter is that Heath was experimenting with drugs to better identify with certain roles he was playing.  Check the record.  It’s a fact.  If Lindsay Lohan relapses badly, the producers of “Liz & Dick” will have to check their conscience!

Message to Lindsay:  Well done, kid.  Stay sober and stay away from users and abusers like Charlie Sheen.