The International journal on drug policy
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Int. J. Drug Policy · Jun 2015
Harm reduction in U.S. tobacco control: Constructions in textual news media.
U.S. tobacco control has long emphasized abstinence, yet quitting smoking is hard and cessation rates low. Tobacco harm reduction alternatives espouse substituting cigarettes with safer nicotine and tobacco products. Policy shifts embracing tobacco harm reduction have increased media attention, yet it remains controversial. Discourse theory posits language as fluid, and socially constructed meaning as neither absolute nor neutral, elevating certain views over others while depicting "discursive struggle" between them. While an abstinence-based framework dominates tobacco policy, discourse theory suggests constructions of nicotine and tobacco use can change, for example by positioning tobacco harm reduction more favorably. ⋯ Heightened salience surrounding tobacco harm reduction and electronic cigarettes suggests their greater acceptance in U.S. tobacco control. Various media depictions construct harm reduction as a temporary means to cessation, and conflict with other constructions of it that place no subjective value on continued "safer" tobacco/nicotine use. Constructions of science largely obscure claims of the veracity of tobacco harm reduction, with conflict surrounding appropriate public health benchmarks for tobacco policy and health risks of nicotine use. Taxation policies and e-cigarette pricing relative to cigarettes are key for wider adoption, while concerns are raised for whether their availability will increase initiation.
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Int. J. Drug Policy · Jun 2015
Prospects for a nicotine-reduction strategy in the cigarette endgame: Alternative tobacco harm reduction scenarios.
Some major national and international tobacco control organisations favour mandating a reduction in nicotine content of cigarettes to non-addictive levels as a tobacco control tool. Reducing nicotine content, it is argued, will make tobacco smoking less attractive. The 2009 U. ⋯ Time will tell if and when mandatory nicotine reduction in tobacco cigarettes will occur and what impact it might have on smoking prevalence. The question posed here is "Why wait?" Resources used in implementing reduction in nicotine content have an opportunity cost. In the meantime, nicotine-maintaining harm reduction strategies can have nearer term effects on tobacco use as an individual and a public health issue.
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Int. J. Drug Policy · Jun 2015
Prevalence and reasons for use of electronic cigarettes among smokers: Findings from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Netherlands Survey.
Not much is known about how people in the Netherlands respond to electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes); how many know about them, which people try them, keep using them and why, and what are changes over time regarding awareness and use? ⋯ E-cigarettes are increasingly used by Dutch smokers. Commonly endorsed motivations for current e-cigarette use were to reduce tobacco smoking and because e-cigarettes are considered to be less harmful than tobacco cigarettes.
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Int. J. Drug Policy · May 2015
Social and recovery capital amongst homeless hostel residents who use drugs and alcohol.
Homeless people who use drugs and alcohol have been described as one of the most marginalised groups in society. In this paper, we explore the relationships of homeless drug and alcohol users who live in hostels in order to ascertain the nature and extent of their social and recovery capital. ⋯ Homeless hostel residents who use drugs and alcohol have various opportunities for building social capital that can in turn foster recovery capital. Therapies that focus on promoting positive social networks amongst people experiencing addiction seem to offer a valuable way of working with homeless hostel residents who use drugs and alcohol. Gains are, however, likely to be maximised where hostel management and staff are supportive of, and actively engage with, therapy delivery.