Men’s Health Week is celebrated each year as the week leading up to and including Father’s Day. This year, Men’s Health Week runs from June 11th–17th. It is observed as part of the larger Men’s Health Month, which is celebrated during the month of June with screenings, health fairs, media appearances, and other health education and outreach activities.

The ABC television drama Boston Legal is one of my favorite programs. The show features quick, intelligent dialogue and great performances. Producer David E. Kelly has used Boston Legal as a platform to speak out on a number of issues over the last four seasons. Each installment walks a fine line between entertainment and political/social issues such as the Iraq War, global warming and Hurricane Katrina. Tuesday night’s season premier titled “Smoke Signals” was no exception. In this episode, Kelly tackles big tobacco.

Today, the American Cancer Society (ACS) celebrates the Great American Smokeout, an annual event in the U.S. to encourage Americans to quit smoking. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2006 one in five U.S. adults smoked [1]. The Great American Smokeout challenges those people to smoke less or quit smoking for the day. The event also raises awareness of the many effective ways to quit for good.

The ACS has just wrapped up their first ever video contest on YouTube, where they asked people to create videos – one minute or less – to discourage smoking. You can check out the contest winners at the American Cancer Society.

You can also read more about the harmful effects of smoking and tobacco smoke in these articles here at Highlight HEALTH:

• Smoking Duration vs. Intensity and the Impact on Lung Cancer Risk
• Irreversible Gene Expression Changes From Smoking
• Smoking Cessation Timeline: What Happens When You Quit
• Second-hand Smoke Exposure Linked to Psychological Problems in Children

Accept the Great American Smokeout Challenge.
Quit for one day, or quit for good.

References

1. Cigarette smoking among adults–United States, 2006. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2007 Nov 9;56(44):1157-61.
   View abstract

We’ve discussed smoking and health a number of times recently:

• Smoking Cessation Timeline: What Happens When You Quit
• Irreversible Gene Expression Changes From Smoking

One of our readers asked a question I’m sure many have us have wondered about at one time or another:

Which is worse for the development of lung cancer — smoking heavily over a short period of time or smoking fewer cigarettes over many years?

Here’s what the research has to say:

Recent research published in the online open journal BMC Genomics shows that smoking leads to changes in gene expression, some of which are reversible and some of which are permanent. Genes that are irreversibly changed may help to explain why former smokers, even after 10 years of not smoking, are still more susceptible to lung cancer than those who have never smoked.