Thinking 'bout THR Newsletter
September 8-11, 2024
Educational Guides For Healthcare Professionals & Social Workers
The Safer Nicotine Wiki team announces a new resource!
Kaelynn Partlow is a Registered Behavior Technician and is autistic. She helps people with autism learn skills that improve their quality of life. Her YouTube channel educates people on what autism is like for her and her clients.
While some of us with autism are known for our “obsessions,” Kaelynn words it more positively and calls it “specialized focus.” Some autistic people maintain the same focus for most of their lives. I tend to latch on to something for a block of time, usually several years, and then a new focus takes over my life.
I always have a primary focus and then some sub-focuses. I’m naturally curious, so most of the things I focus on provide endless opportunities to be learning. I’ve deep-dived into music, clouds, peaceful civil rights leaders, people living with disabilities, dinosaurs, dogs, plants, space, brains, child development, coffee, learning disabilities, autism, DNA, and countless other things over the years.
For many years, my passion was genealogy. It started with tracing my family tree and blossomed into an interest in forensic and reverse genealogy. I volunteered with and served as co-director of Unclaimed Persons, a fantastic group of volunteer researchers that help coroners and medical examiners find the living next-of-kin for a decedent.
Before researching my family tree, I wasn’t interested in history. History classes bored me, and I couldn’t feel a connection to what we were taught. Learning about my ancestors provided me with that missing connection, and now I find history fascinating.
I learned that I love researching and hunting for more information through genealogy. While researching my family tree, I discovered that I come from a long line of people who farmed, owned small businesses, or served in the military. This tradition continues in the current generations.
I identify strongly with the farmers in my family tree. I equate my volunteer work with planting seeds and constantly collecting knowledge as harvesting. Sharing my knowledge is like sending my crops to market.
I love being part of the all-volunteer team at the Safer Nicotine Wiki (SNW). We are a diverse group with members from all over the globe. Being involved with the SNW allows me to deep-dive into my current specialized focus—nicotine, and provides a home for the data I love to harvest. The SNW offers people resources, education, and information to push back against misperceptions and unjust regulations.
The SNW team is passionate about nicotine. We care deeply about people who smoke tobacco and want them to have the needed information so they can make informed choices. Many of our pages address the rampant misinformation about nicotine and safer alternatives to smoking tobacco.
Too many people in healthcare have misperceptions about nicotine, believing it is what causes cancer, heart disease, and COPD, and don’t know it’s the burning of tobacco that is the cause of those things.
When those who help people in times of wellness, sickness, or crisis don’t have accurate information, it limits their ability to help people who smoke tobacco. Today, I’m proud to announce that the SNW team is creating a new wiki page to help educate healthcare professionals and social workers about nicotine and tobacco harm reduction.
We’d love suggestions for helpful material we can add to the page. If you’re aware of updated versions of any of the resources listed, please send them to me.
Those of you working in the fields covered on this guidance page, do you have any suggestions on what we should include with each resource to help you quickly find those that may be useful to you?
I hope the information we harvest and the seeds we plant in the nicotine space will help more people land on the right side of history.
Until next time….
Journal of Free Speech Law: "Speech Regulation and Tobacco Harm Reduction," by Jonathan H. Adler & Jacob James Rich. “Regulatory constraints on the provision of truthful information to consumers about tobacco products may be having deadly consequences.”
Youth Vapor Product Use at Historic Lows, Use of New Oral Nicotine Products Still Low. “Moreover, there are more urgent concerns, such as safety in schools. For instance, the CDC’s biennial Youth Risk Behavior Survey revealed that 9% of high school students reported being threatened or injured with a weapon on school premises in 2023, a figure 2.9 times higher than the number of students using nicotine pouches.”
Doctors, health experts say nicotine alone does not cause disease. “Dr. Newhouse of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in the US stressed the need to better understand nicotine's effects on the brain and its potential therapeutic applications while emphasizing that its role cannot be simplified into a binary of good or bad.”
Opinion: Nicotine pouches are helping me quit smoking. Ottawa shouldn’t ban them. “And they should be sold in convenience stores, not just pharmacies, so smokers have a less dangerous option right beside the cigarettes.”
Experimenting with different vapes could be crucial to help people quit smoking. “The University of East Anglia led a study which found that giving out free e-cigarette starter packs in hospital emergency departments to people who smoke helped one in four people quit.”
Flavored e-cigarettes cut smoking rates and toxic exposure in high-risk groups. “A study published in JAMA Network Open reveals that access to electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) with commonly preferred flavors can significantly reduce the frequency of tobacco smoking in adults with psychiatric disorders, opioid use disorder (OUD), and lower educational levels. “
Historic Agreement Between CoEHAR of the University of Catania and the Padjadjaran University: the launch of the CoEHAR Indonesia. “he document – signed in Bandung, West Java, in the presence of CoEHAR founder, Prof. Riccardo Polosa, and the director, Prof. Giovanni Li Volti – is a formal commitment by both parties to collaborate in the creation and launch of a new CoEHAR branch in Indonesia, which will serve as a regional center for research, outreach, and education on smoking harm reduction in the Asia-Pacific region.”
Tobacco Control 2.0: A Modern Approach to a Decades-Old Problem. “This is part one of a three-part series on the future of tobacco control public policy.”
How bureaucracy stalls the battle against smoking. “Congress must address and revise the restrictive 2009 tobacco law, which currently impedes tobacco harm reduction efforts for American adults who smoke.”
Americans are still dying from smoking-related diseases. Here’s how we can help reduce deaths. “The reality is that we live in a time very different from the combustible tobacco heyday. We learn more every day about who smokes and uses other tobacco products and why, and with that knowledge comes the responsibility to change how we help individuals quit or transition to safer alternatives.”
Kicking the habit of smoking: Exploring safer alternatives for tobacco cessation in India. “Countries like Sweden, the USA, the UK and Japan, have adopted novel approaches to tobacco cessation with remarkable success. Dr Narender Saini shared.”
International harm reduction experts urge government to rethink “A group of international tobacco harm reduction advocates has asked Bangladesh authorities to reconsider its proposed prohibition of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) and other smokefree nicotine alternatives in a letter addressed to the Ministry of Health.”
The events listed below focus on nicotine. Some do not support reduced-risk products. Some have covered nicotine in the past but may not cover that topic every year.
Sep 8-14, 2024 National Suicide Prevention Week
Sep 11-13, 2024, SCHAUMBURG, IL, US (Industry specific) - CSP Tobacco+ Forum.
Sep 12, 2024 (Virtual) - Design and effectiveness of a vaping cessation intervention for adolescent e-cigarette users: Results from a randomized trial.
Sep 16-17, 2024 (Virtual) - 7th Summit on Tobacco Harm Reduction by SCOHRE. You can follow them on X (Twitter) and Facebook.
Sep 17-19, 2024, Geneva, Switzerland - World Cancer Congress (Includes sessions about tobacco.)
Sep 20, 2024, (Virtual) 2:00-3:00 PM ET - TOPS Tobacco Online Policy Seminars. You can follow them on X (Twitter).
Sep 20, 2024 (Virtual) - Conversations on Cancer: National Hispanic Family Cancer Awareness Week.
Sep 23, 2024, NYC, NY, US (In-person & Virtual) - New Approaches Conference. You can follow them on LinkedIn and X (Twitter).
Sep 24-26, 2024, Athens, Greece (In-person & Virtual) - GTNF. You can follow them on LinkedIn and X (Twitter).
Sep 25, 2024 - World Lung Day
Sep 27-Oct 1, 2024, Orlando, FL, US - American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition. Monday, Sept. 30: “What’s All the Buzz? New and Emerging Nicotine Products Addicting Youth,” Brian King, Ph.D., M.P.H
Sep 29, 2024 - World Heart Day
Sep 30, 2024, 11 AM BST (Virtual) - Behavioural Research UK: Causality, evidence and policy in behavioural research. You can follow them on X (Twitter).
Sep 30, 2024, 8 AM - 6 PM (In-person) London - Nicotine addiction 2024: Action on smoking.
October - Stoptober
October - Healthy Lung Month
October - Health Literacy Month
Oct 3-4, 2024, Burlington, VT, US (In-person & Virtual) - Vermont Center on Behavior and Health 12th Annual Conference. 2024 Theme: "Tobacco Use: Intersections with Other Addictions, Chronic Disease, and Health Disparities."
Oct 4, 2024, (Virtual) 2:00-3:00 PM ET - TOPS Tobacco Online Policy Seminars. You can follow them on X (Twitter).
*NEW* Oct 7, 2024 (Virtual) 12:00 PM (UK) - Stoptober 2024: Busting Vape Myths: A Closer Look at the Evidence.
*NEW* Oct 7, 2024, (Virtual) 2-4:30PM CEST - SRNT-E Non-combustible nicotine – beyond electronic cigarettes.
Oct 13-17, 2024, Edinburgh, Scotland - CORESTA Congress 2024
Oct 14-17, 2024 (In-person) PA, US - Clearing the Air® Institute. American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation
*NEW* Oct 15, 2024, (Virtual) 12-1 PM EST - Addressing the Harmful Effects of Tobacco Related Stigma.
Oct 15, 2024, US (Virtual) - FDLI Introduction to Tobacco Law and Regulation. You can follow them on LinkedIn, X (Twitter), and Facebook.
*NEW* Oct 19, 2024, (In-person & Virtual) Malaysia, - Harm Reduction Conference 2024.
Oct 23-25, 2024, Lisbon, Portugal - LISBON ADDICTIONS European Conference on Addictive Behaviours and Dependencies. (Some of the sessions are about tobacco/nicotine.)
Oct 23-25, 2024, Broadbeach, Australia - Oceania Tobacco Control Conference 2024. See list of Conflict of Interest Principles.
Oct 23, 2024, Washington DC, US (In-person and Virtual) - FDLI Tobacco and Nicotine Products Regulatory Science Symposium. You can follow them on LinkedIn, X (Twitter), and Facebook.
Oct 24-25,2024, Washington DC, US (In-person and Virtual) - FDLI Tobacco and Nicotine Products Regulation and Policy Conference. You can follow them on LinkedIn, X (Twitter), and Facebook.
Oct 27-30, 2024, Minneapolis, MN, US - 2024 APHA Annual Meeting and Expo (Public Health). Register here.
Oct 28, 2024, Charleston, SC, US (In-Person & Virtual) 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM ET - Susan Rosenblatt lecture: Brian King
Oct 28-29, 2024, Charleston, SC, US (Virtual and In-Person) 2024 NICOTINE AND TOBACCO SCIENCE CONFERENCE
November - COPD Awareness Month
November - Lung Cancer Awareness Month
Nov 6-8, 2024, Harrisburg, PA, 2024 James E. Anderson Pennsylvania Conference on Juvenile Justice. One of the workshops, Restorative Solutions: Rethinking Youth Tobacco, Nicotine, and Vaping Dependency
Nov 13-14, 2024, Accra, Ghana - Africa Conference on Tobacco Control.
Nov 14-15, 2024, UK - SSA Annual Conference. Early bird discounts until September 9, 2024. Professor Ann McNeill will give the Society Lecture at the SSA’s Annual Conference. The title of the talk is, ‘Tobacco harm reduction – controversies and potential resolutions’.
Nov 14-16, 2024, Chicago, IL, US—AMERSA Conference—Note: We won't know until the agenda is announced if nicotine will be part of this year's conference.
Nov 14-16, 2024, Ontario, Canada - CSAM-SMCA 2024 Scientific Conference.
Nov 18-20, 2024, Olomouc, Czech Republic, (In-person) - Czech Annual Cancer Research Meeting. Note: Keynote talks: Prof. David Khayat on Cancer Risk Factors: The Role of Tobacco Harm Reduction.
Nov 21, 2024, Great American Smokeout
December 5, 2024, UK (Virtual and In-person), E-Cigarette Summit UK
Dec 30, 2024, World Safer Nicotine Day #WSND #WSND24
Scroll Down for 2025 and 2026 Events
Check out the public Google calendar of THR-related events created and maintained by Clive Bates. Also, check out the event calendar from Ecig Intelligence. Their listings include consumer/trade shows and expos that I don't include in this newsletter. This is a good resource for information on conferences about addiction/behavior.
Committee Openings
FDLI - Applications for 2025 Committee Service are Now Open. Application Deadline is September 20, 2024.
Wanted: Conference/Seminar Submissions…
TOPS Tobacco Online Policy Seminar call for papers/nominations. The submission deadline is October 7, 2024.
Call for Papers
Themed issue/section on Non-Medicinal Oral Nicotine Products. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2024
Tobacco Use in Adolescents and Youth. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2024
Tobacco Use, Vaping, Heating, Nicotine Dependence, Smoking Cessation, and Public Health. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2024
Cancer prevention. Submission Deadline: 11 October 2024
Mental Health, Stigma and Addictive Behaviors. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 November 2024
Empirical modeling. Submission deadline: 28 November 2024
Generating stronger evidence to inform policy and practice: natural experiments on built environments, health behaviours and chronic diseases. Submission deadline: November 30, 2024
A Means to an ENDS: The Uncertainty of ENDS Use and Cardiovascular Disease From Human Research to Basic Science Mechanisms. Submission deadline: 31 December 2024
Cancer Causes and Control. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024
Factors Associated with Successful Smoking Cessation. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024
Scroll down for 2025 opportunities
Call for Papers
E-cigarettes and Vaping Products: Health Effects and Toxicological Impacts. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 21 January 2025
Thinking Outside the Box to Reduce Health Inequities in Perinatal Tobacco and Nicotine Exposure: A Nicotine & Tobacco Research Themed Issue Nicotine & Tobacco Research intends to publish a themed issue on Prenatal Tobacco and Nicotine Exposure. The guest editors for this issue will be Dr. Natacha De Genna, Dr. Laura Stroud, and Prof. Yael Bar-Zeev. Submission deadline: February 1, 2025.
LGBTQ+ Health. Submission deadline: 04 March 2025
Consumer behaviour. Submission deadline: 25 March 2025
Wearable devices. Submission deadline: 27 March 2025
The Tobacco Endgame in Low- And Middle-Income Countries and Indigenous Communities: Evidence Syntheses and Systematic Reviews. Submission deadline: 25 May 2025
STRONGER Scholars: A Research Education Program to Reduce Tobacco-Related Cancer Disparities and Improve Health Equity. A special issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025
Jan 15-19, 2025 Seattle, WA, US - Society for Social Work and Research.
Feb 13-15, 2025, Boston, MA, US - 2025 AAAS ANNUAL MEETING. AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE
Mar 5, 2025 York, UK (In-person & Virtual SCAH - Smoking Cessation and Health Conference.
Mar 12-15, 2025 New Orleans, LA, US - SRNT 31st Annual Meeting
Mar 27-29, 2025 - Phoenix, AZ, US - 31st Nicotine Dependence Center Conference 2025: The Evolving Tobacco Landscape and Implications for Policy and Practice.
April 15-17, 2025, Arlington, VA, US - American Tobacco & Nicotine Forum (ATNF), formerly the TMA Annual Meeting & Conference (I’m not aware of a link available to the event yet)
Apr 27-30, 2025 - Bogotá, Colombia - 28th edition of the Harm Reduction Conference (HR25)
June 2025, Bangor, Maine, US - 2025 Tobacco Treatment and Prevention Conference.
Aug 26-28, 2025 Chicago, IL, US - The National Conference on Tobacco or Health (NCTOH) (Link is to the announcement, not event info)
Sep 10-12, 2025 Romania - SRNT-E Conference.
Nov 17, 2025 (all week) Geneva - FCTC COP11
Nov 24, 2025 (all week) Geneva - FCTC MOP4
Mar 4-6, 2026 Baltimore, MD, US - SRNT 32nd Annual Meeting.
Sep 6-9 2026, Cape Town, South Africa - 18th World Conference on Public Health.
Notes:
I create these newsletters as a personal project. They are not affiliated with any current or past employers or groups I do volunteer work with. I believe that everyone deserves a seat at the table. If you’re interested in nicotine with a focus on THR, this newsletter is for you.