Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of premature death in the United States and is responsible for approximately 443,000 deaths each year. Of those deaths, 49,400 are a result of secondhand smoke exposure. Here are some more facts and figures about tobacco use and reasons why continued efforts to prevent it are needed:

Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of premature death in the United States and is responsible for approximately 443,000 deaths each year. Of those deaths, 49,400 are a result of secondhand smoke exposure. Here are some more facts and figures about tobacco use and reasons why continued efforts to prevent it are needed:

In a surprising finding, new research out of Great Britain shows that many employers in their 60s have a lower “relative vitality age” – and thus, lower health risks – than colleagues in their 30s. The Britain’s Healthiest Company Report* crunched numbers on nearly 10,000 people and concluded that the sexagenarians in the survey had lower health risks based on a “Vitality Age calculator” developed by PruHealth, a health insurer and wellness program provider.

Americans are making considerable progress in their overall health, according to United Health Foundation’s 2013 America’s Health Rankings®: A Call to Action for Individuals & Their Communities.

What better time than during the American Cancer Society’s  annual Great American Smokeout, to highlight the benefit of  comprehensive smoke-free workplaces  on the health of workers. Furnishing a smoke-free work environment has been shown to both reduce exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) among non-smokers, and also to decrease smoking among employees.

The subject of one of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) anti-smoking PSAs has died at the age of 54. Nathan Moose, who appeared in two videos in the high-profile Tips campaign to get Americans to quit smoking, was a non-smoker who worked for 11 years in a casino that allowed smoking.

Innovative techniques and the latest researcher in smoking cessation will be on the agenda at the American Psychological Association’s annual convention in August. Researchers will examine how smokers respond to dramatically reducing nicotine levels in cigarettes, text messages that can help smokers curb cravings and how medication may be a key to helping women avoid lighting up when stressed.