Home health and community care workers' occupational exposure to secondhand smoke: A rapid literature review

Introduction While many workers are protected from exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke (SHS), home health and community care workers enter domestic settings where SHS is commonly present. Little is known about the extent of SHS exposure among this occupational group. Methods A rapid review to examine the literature on home health and community care workers’ exposure to SHS at work and identify research gaps. Systematic searches combining terms for SHS exposure (e.g. “tobacco smoke pollution”) with terms for home health and care workers, patients and settings (e.g. “home health nursing”) were run in CINAHL and Medline (with no date or language limitations). Website and backwards-forwards citation searches identified further papers for narrative review. Results Twenty relevant publications covering seventeen studies considered home health or community care workers’ exposure to SHS either solely or as part of an assessment of other workplace hazards. Eight studies provided data on either the proportion of home care workers exposed to SHS or the frequency of exposure to SHS. No studies provided quantification of SHS concentrations experienced by this group of workers. Conclusions Exposure to SHS is likely to be common for workers who enter private homes to provide care. There is a need for research to understand the number of workers exposed to SHS, and the frequency, duration and intensity of the exposure. Guidance should be developed to balance the rights and responsibilities of those requiring care alongside the need to prevent the harmful effects of SHS to workers providing care in domestic settings

Alcohol advertising: the last chance saloon

Research has established that alcohol advertising,1-3 like that for tobacco4 and fast food,5-7 influences behaviour. It encourages young people to drink alcohol sooner and in greater quantities. From a public health perspective, advertising of alcohol should clearly be limited. The United Kingdom has opted for a system of self regulatory controls that focuses primarily on the content of advertisements, with some limitations on the channels that can be used. This is overseen by the Advertising Standards Authority, through the Committee of Advertising Practice, which represents the interests of advertisers, agencies, and media owners.As part of its alcohol inquiry, the House of Commons health select committee wanted to explore the success of self regulation. It obtained a large number of internal marketing documents from alcohol producers and their communications agencies in order to examine the thinking and strategic planning that underpin alcohol advertising and hence show not just what advertisers are saying, but why they are saying it. Here we present the key insights to emerge

African swine fever in wild boar: investigating model assumptions and structure

African swine fever (ASF) is a highly virulent viral disease that affects both domestic pigs and wild boar. Current ASF transmission in Europe is in part driven by wild boar populations, which act as a disease reservoir. Wild boar are abundant throughout Europe and are highly social animals with complex social organisation. Despite the known importance of wild boar in ASF spread and persistence, there remain knowledge gaps surrounding wild boar transmission. To investigate the influence of density-contact functions and wild boar social structure on disease dynamics, we developed a wild boar modelling framework. The framework included an ordinary differential equation model, a homogeneous stochastic model, and various network-based stochastic models that explicitly included wild boar social grouping. We found that power law functions (transmission $\propto$ density$^{0.5}$) and frequency-based density-contact functions were best able to reproduce recent Baltic outbreaks; however, power law function models predicted considerable carcass transmission, while frequency-based models had negligible carcass transmission. Furthermore, increased model heterogeneity caused a decrease in the relative importance of carcass-based transmission. The different dominant transmission pathways predicted by each model type affected the efficacy of potential interventions, which highlights the importance of evaluating model type and structure when modelling systems with uncertainties.Comment: 37 pages. 11 figures in main, 9 figures in appendix. 3 tables in main, 8 tables in appendi

Rapid evidence review: The impact of promotions on high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) food and drink on consumer purchasing and consumption behaviour and the effectiveness of retail environment interventions

This briefing paper aims to provide an overview of the best available evidence on the impact of promotions on high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) food and drink on consumer purchasing and consumption behaviour and the effectiveness of promotional interventions to influence consumer behaviour in a retail environment.The first section looks at the context of obesity and landscape of promotions in Scotland. The second section sets out the evidence on the impact of promotions on purchasing and consumption behaviour and the effectiveness of retail promotional interventions to encourage the purchase of healthy foods. The final section provides conclusions from the available evidence and limitations of the review

A systematic review of research exploring the response of consumers, retailers and tobacco companies to standardised packaging in the United Kingdom

Introduction The UK fully implemented standardised packaging for cigarettes and rolling tobacco in May 2017, after a twelve month transition period. We conducted a systematic review of published research exploring consumer, tobacco company and retail response to this policy. Methods We searched for peer-reviewed published studies which explored consumer, retailer or tobacco company response to standardised packaging in the UK. Studies were screened against inclusion criteria. Data from included studies were extracted into standardised forms and each study was critically appraised. Findings were reported by narrative synthesis. Results Eleven papers, reporting on ten studies, were included, with five studies examining consumer responses to standardised packaging, and five studies exploring the response of tobacco companies and changes in the retail environment. In three consumer studies standardised packaging was associated with increased warning salience, but there was limited evidence of the impacts on smoking behaviour. Evidence from tobacco company and retail studies showed that standardised packs were not widely available until late in the transition period, although compliance with the legislation was high. Tobacco prices, for rolling tobacco and for cigarettes in each price segment (premium, mid-price, value), increased from May 2016 to October 2017. Discussion Standardised packaging appears to have increased warning salience but there is a need for research, after it was fully implemented, on perceptions of appeal and harm, behavioural impact, and unintended consequences, if any. Possible pack, price and retail related policy options are discussed

The extent, nature and effects of food promotion to children: a review of the evidence to December 2008

This document reviews evidence to December 2008 on the global extent and nature of food promotion to children, and its effects on their food knowledge, preferences, behaviour and diet related health outcomes. The review was commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO) and updates a systematic review of the evidence conducted on behalf of WHO in 2006. Studies examining the extent and nature of food promotion to children consistently conclude that food promotion is the most prevalent marketing category targeting children and young people. Content analysis research finds that the majority of foods and food products promoted are energy dense, high fat, sugar and/or high salt, and in sharp contrast to national and international dietary guidelines. Sugar-sweetened breakfast cereals, soft-drinks, confectionary and savoury snacks are the most frequently advertised categories, with fast-food promotion continuing to gain marketing share. Promotion of unprocessed foods, such as fruit and vegetables, wholegrain and milk is found to be almost zero

Seawater acidification more than warming presents a challenge for two Antarctic macroalgal-associated amphipods

Elevated atmospheric pCO2 concentrations are triggering seawater pH reductions and seawater temperature increases along the western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP). These factors in combination have the potential to influence organisms in an antagonistic, additive, or synergistic manner. The amphipods Gondogeneia antarctica and Paradexamine fissicauda represent prominent members of macroalgal-associated mesograzer assemblages of the WAP. Our primary objective was to investigate amphipod behavioral and physiological responses to reduced seawater pH and elevated temperature to evaluate potential cascading ecological impacts. For 90 d, amphipods were exposed to combinations of seawater conditions based on present ambient (pH 8.0, 1.5°C) and predicted end-of-century conditions (pH 7.6, 3.5°C). We recorded survival, molt frequency, and macroalgal consumption rates as well as change in wet mass and proximate body composition (protein and lipid). Survival for both species declined significantly at reduced pH and co-varied with molt frequency. Consumption rates in G. antarctica were significantly higher at reduced pH and there was an additive pH-temperature effect on consumption rates in P. fissicauda. Body mass was reduced for G. antarctica at elevated temperature, but there was no significant effect of pH or temperature on body mass in P. fissicauda. Exposure to the pH or temperature levels tested did not induce significant changes in whole body biochemical composition of G. antarctica, but exposure to elevated temperature resulted in a significant increase in whole body protein content of P. fissicauda. Our study indicates that while elevated temperature causes sub-lethal impacts on both species of amphipods, reduced pH causes significant mortality

E-cigarette uptake and marketing: A report commissioned by Public Health England

E-cigarettes are increasingly popular in a number of countries including the UK. However, they currently pose a number of challenges for public health. First, there are concerns about the extent and nature of the e-cigarette market. In particular, the role of the tobacco industry in manufacturing and promoting e-cigarettes, while continuing to sell conventional cigarettes, has been questioned. Secondly, there is a need to understand the extent to which children and young people may use e-cigarettes, particularly those who are current non smokers. Linked to this is a concern about the current marketing of these products and whether that marketing may appeal to children. Each of these issues is explored here, drawing on available published articles and reports

Promotion of electronic cigarettes: tobacco marketing reinvented?

Electronic cigarettes are not subject to the same marketing controls as tobacco products. Marisa de Andrade, Gerard Hastings, and Kathryn Angus argue that their advertising is likely to appeal to young people and undermine tobacco control policy