Recently, the US "Stars and Stripes" reported that the Pentagon will raise the age of selling cigarettes at military bases and ports in the United States from 18 to 21 from August 1, 2020, that is, soldiers under 21 are not allowed to buy cigarettes.
According to the military, US territory and property, as well as naval vessels in US ports, are subject to this regulation, and the sales of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, hookahs, cigars, pipe tobacco and e-cigarettes will all be affected.
Why did electronic cigarettes, together with traditional tobacco, become the object of "declaration of war" by the US military?
Tobacco is one of the main culprits of abnormal death of American soldiers.
Smoking, alcoholism, drug overdose and drug abuse are the main culprits of abnormal deaths of military personnel recognized by the US military. Tobacco is one of the main culprits of abnormal death of American troops, which not only causes diseases and casualties, but also brings huge economic losses. According to Pentagon estimates, 30% of the military personnel who died of cancer were caused by smoking.
In recent years, the US military has taken great pains to ban smoking, but …
Wen Miao Wang Peizhi
Editor Li Xue looked at the think tank
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one
What "smoke" can American soldiers do without?
All kinds of tobacco products are very popular in the shops of US military bases.
Cigarettes are the standard of US military rations.
During World War II, cigarettes were once essential supplies for the US military, and the logistics department would stuff several packs of cigarettes into soldiers’ backpacks. Smoking has also become a secret weapon for soldiers to relax or paralyze themselves between battles.
As a result, Marlboro, Camel and other famous American cigarettes landed on the European continent with the US military, and 430 million cigarettes and 20 million cigars were transported to the European battlefield every month!
For decades, cigarettes, together with coffee, canned lunch meat and compressed dry food, have become the standard configuration of US military combat rations.
Note: In view of the impact of cigarettes on health, the US military began not to distribute cigarettes in military rations in 1975.
American soldier called "Marlboro Man" by the media in the Iraq War.
According to a survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Defense and related institutions in 2009, the number of smokers in the U.S. military exceeded 1/3 of the whole army. In 2015, 7.4% of active servicemen smoked every day. In 2019, the Ministry of National Defense reported that soldiers deployed in the front line were the most addicted to cigarettes, and about half of the US troops serving in Iraq smoked.
In addition, veterans with combat experience are 50% more likely to smoke than soldiers who have never experienced war. More than 80% soldiers use tobacco products to "relax or calm down" and 81.5% people use tobacco products to "help relieve stress".
Marine corps’ favorite: chewing cigarettes
In addition to traditional cigarettes, chewing tobacco is also a favorite of American soldiers. If you have seen westerns, you will find that this "smokeless tobacco" has a long history.
In 2015, it was estimated that 7.4% of pilots used smokeless tobacco.
In 2016, Lieutenant General Mark Aidig, the chief military doctor of the Air Force Research Group, said that the rate of chewing tobacco products used by the military was still higher than that of civilians.
In 2019, the Marine Corps had the highest utilization rate of smokeless tobacco products, reaching 21.3%.
Smokeless tobacco.
New upstart in recent years: e-cigarettes
E-cigarette, which belongs to steam smoke, is mainly composed of battery, heating evaporation device and a smoke tube filled with smoke liquid. Because when using e-cigarette, it will be heated to produce trace steam (the word vape comes from vapor, that is, steam), smoking e-cigarette is called "vaping" to distinguish it from traditional "smoking".
American troops who "enjoy" electronic cigarettes.
In the United States, e-cigarettes were originally approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to help smokers quit smoking. Because of its light weight, convenient carrying and storage, low price and diverse tastes, the number of consumers of e-cigarettes in the United States is increasing year by year, especially among young officers and men.
Since 2012, U.S. military stores and supermarkets have started to sell e-cigarettes, and the sales volume has increased steadily (the sales volume of air force stores alone reached 272,700 in 2016). After a short decline, by the beginning of 2019, the sales volume of U.S. military e-cigarettes almost doubled, and the top rankings were mainly mint and fruit flavors.
According to a survey conducted by the US military in 2015, compared with 2011, the number of soldiers using e-cigarettes increased five times; 11.1% of soldiers use electronic cigarettes every day, and about 7.4% smoke cigarettes. Among the recruits of that year, nearly 20% said they were e-cigarette smokers.
In January 2019, the Rand Company reported that the Marine Corps used the highest proportion of e-cigarettes, accounting for 16.1%; Followed by the navy, 14.5%; The army is 11.2%; Air force 10.5%; Coast Guard 9.3%.
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Tobacco, an invisible and deadly enemy
The harm of cigarette products is actually the same all over the world. Because cigarettes are the fixed military food of the US military, the research on the harm of cigarettes by the US military is more practical.
One of the hazards: destroying the health of soldiers
According to the data of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cigarette smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, 70 of which can cause cancer and cause more than 5 million deaths worldwide every year.
In 2012, smoking killed about 443,000 Americans, accounting for about one-fifth of the annual deaths in the United States. The number of deaths caused by tobacco use each year exceeds the sum of deaths caused by AIDS, illegal drug use, drinking, car accidents, suicide and murder. In 2013, the number was 480,000, of which about 49,000 were victims of second-hand smoke.
Smoking can cause cancer in almost any part of the body, including blood, bladder, cervix, colon, esophagus, kidney, throat, liver, lung, mouth, pancreas, stomach and trachea. The Pentagon estimates that 30% of soldiers who died of cancer were caused by smoking.
Bianca Sandifer, an army soldier, smokes in front of a convenience store.
In addition, smoking can lead to coronary heart disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm, cataract, diabetes and many more serious diseases.
Smokeless tobacco, such as moist snuff and chewing tobacco, is as harmful as smoking, and may lead to oral cancer, esophageal cancer and pancreatic cancer. It may also damage gums, lead to tooth decay and tooth loss, and increase the risk of death from heart disease and stroke. Smoking can also increase blood pressure and increase blocked arterial plaques.
In recent years, US military health officials have been clamoring for officers and men to seriously consider quitting smoking, encouraging all military units to carry out educational activities, and warning officers and men who smoke for a long time, especially young soldiers aged 18-19, that "you are simply playing Russian roulette with your own life".
The military health problems caused by smoking have also directly affected the operational deployment of the US military. During the Iraq war, the US investigation team went deep into the front-line combat troops to spot-check the position of combatants, and found that more than a dozen soldiers died of diseases caused by long-term excessive smoking (some of them were doped with various drugs). Surprisingly, their troops did not report it in time, and some commanders even claimed the pay of the dead soldiers.
The second hazard: swallowing up huge military expenditures.
In 2009, the Pentagon spent as much as $874 million on medical treatment and manpower loss due to smoking and chewing tobacco, and the Department of Veterans Affairs spent $6.46 billion on the treatment of tobacco-related diseases.
In 2014, a memorandum of the Ministry of National Defense said that the use of tobacco brought about $1.6 billion in medical expenses to the military every year-the government had to allocate huge sums of money to the Ministry of Health to perform surgery and treatment for soldiers with lung and cardiovascular diseases, most of which required long-term care and medication.
For officers and men, the cost of long-term smoking is not small. According to the data of the National Cancer Institute of the United States in July 2019, the average price of a pack of cigarettes is 6.28 dollars, and a pack of cigarettes per day costs 188 dollars per month, 2292 dollars per year, and 10 years of smoking costs as much as 23,000 dollars per person.
Note: $6.28 per pack is only the national average, and the price will be higher in states and regions where tobacco taxes are higher.
Smokers must also pay higher life insurance and other auxiliary expenses such as dental hygiene.
The third hazard: causing dangerous accidents.
On May 22nd, 2008, the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier "George Washington" of the United States caught fire on its way to Japan in the South Pacific Ocean, causing 37 injuries and losses of more than 70 million dollars! The cause was that a second lieutenant illegally smoked and threw cigarette butts at the lifting platform, which ignited 90 gallons of flammable materials stored in the material room and boiler room. Then the fire spread all over the ship, and it took five hours to be put out.
The following year, the U.S. Department of Defense stipulated that no one was allowed to smoke below the submarine deck. However, the long-term working in a narrow and dark cabin has a great impact on the psychological situation, and it is easy to be agitated and fearful. It relies on tobacco to calm down the mood. About 40%(2011 statistics) of naval soldiers have the habit of smoking, which often leads to fires.
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Why do e-cigarettes become "bull’s-eye"?
E-cigarettes with gorgeous packaging and many flavors are not beautiful behind the painted skin.
There is no evidence that e-cigarettes can help people quit smoking for a long time. In May 2018, the Ministry of National Defense issued the "Quit Smoking Briefing", saying: "E-cigarettes are not an approved way to quit smoking. The use of e-cigarettes by young people who do not smoke may lead to smoking, because most e-cigarettes contain nicotine, which is very addictive."
Not only that, it is even fatal.
First, the battery of e-cigarette is at risk of explosion.
In April, 2017, Houston Chronicle reported that a 56-year-old navy veteran had a third-degree burn on his right leg and a hole was blown out because an electronic cigarette exploded in his pocket, and filed a lawsuit against the electronic cigarette company.
A year later, the US Navy announced the ban on e-cigarettes, and cited a large number of reports about the explosion of e-cigarettes and injuries to crew members. According to the website of the Ministry of National Defense, in October 2015 and June 2016, there were at least two serious electronic cigarette battery explosions in the US military, and several times they exploded in soldiers’ mouths. The news that e-cigarette users in the United States are injured by battery explosion is endless.
In April 2017, the US Navy issued an announcement prohibiting electronic cigarettes from entering the fleet to protect crew, equipment and ships.
Second, e-cigarettes contain pathogenic substances.
Air force research believes that e-cigarettes can provide nicotine, essence and other chemicals to soldiers in the form of steam instead of smoke. These chemicals are heated to produce an aerosol that is inhaled into the lungs, and some of them will damage the lungs after mixing, which in turn will cause inflammation. More and more studies show that smoking e-cigarettes can easily cause users to cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, fatigue, fever or weight loss.
The chemicals in e-cigarettes are often fatal.
In February 2018, the Fayetteville Observer reported that at least 24 soldiers had been treated at the Womach Army Medical Center in fort bragg, North Carolina for long-term use of e-cigarettes, "with symptoms ranging from headache to epilepsy". Two months later, the number of cases in Womach Army Medical Center and the Naval Medical Center in Camp Lejun increased to about 60 people (including civilians and civilians in military bases), and 38 people were diagnosed with diseases caused by e-cigarettes, including 7 deaths, including 1 marine.
In January 2019, two army soldiers suffered lung damage due to smoking e-cigarettes; In August, an adult patient in Illinois was hospitalized with severe lung disease after smoking e-cigarettes and died of respiratory failure.
Officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that 193 people in 22 states were infected with serious respiratory diseases after smoking e-cigarettes, which were similar to inhalation injuries. Since then, the number of deaths among patients with lung injury caused by the use of e-cigarettes in the United States has risen rapidly.
As of October 29, 2019, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported more than 1,800 cases of lung injury and 37 deaths. What they have in common is that patients have used e-cigarettes.
E-cigarettes are very popular in the US military.
Third, e-cigarettes hide "poison"!
Among the 193 people mentioned above, nearly one-third of the patients admitted to smoking electronic cigarettes containing Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, the main active substance of cannabis, which is four times as toxic as cannabis).
The American Electronic Cigarette Association said that "contaminated black market THC products" were the culprit and called on federal officials to remove suspicious nicotine electronic cigarette products. In October 2019, among 573 cases of lung injury in the United States, 76% used products containing THC.
According to people in the electronic cigarette industry in the United States, electronic cigarettes contain various chemical additives (fruit flavor) and cigarette oil. In addition to THC, there are Cannabidiol (CBD), which belongs to synthetic drugs and controlled chemicals and is called "spice" by drug addicts. Its toxicity is 5 ~ 200 times that of THC!
According to the United States Uniform Military Justice Code, it is illegal for military personnel to keep, use and distribute CBD, which is basically similar to the abuse of illegal drugs and drugs. In 2010 and 2011, 380 people and 497 people in the Air Force were punished for using CBD.
However, due to the widespread use of e-cigarettes in the military, no one has seriously investigated them. The use of electronic cigarettes mixed with CBD has become increasingly popular among American pilots in recent years. Some pilots even vomit, are allergic and hallucinate after smoking, and cannot perform combat tasks.
The air force crime investigation office issued a special warning: "We strongly recommend not to use other people’s e-cigarettes unless they really know what is in them."
Two soldiers smoked electronic cigarettes to relax during the training interval.
More dangerously, because the military prohibits the use of THC and CBD, many officers and men take risks, buy Syntheticcannabinoid (SCO) through the Internet or get them from relatives and friends, and add them to e-cigarettes. This chemical has serious medical effects, which can easily lead to headaches, nausea, vomiting and palpitations, and lead to dizziness, disorientation and epilepsy.
In addition, British health officials have studied 75 kinds of best-selling electronic cigarettes in the United States and found that 25% of them contain bacterial components, and about 61 samples contain fungal components.
On March 28th this year, the US Food and Drug Administration said that if e-cigarette users are infected with Covid-19, the risk of serious complications may be higher.
four
The US military took great pains to ban smoking.
All kinds of tobacco do harm to people, and the significance of banning smoking to the army is self-evident.
On June 22, 2009, President Obama, who was quitting smoking, signed the Tobacco Restriction Act, giving the US Food and Drug Administration unprecedented power to strictly restrict and manage the production and sale of tobacco products.
Subsequently, Pentagon health experts put forward a proposal to Robert Gates, then Secretary of Defense, to ban smoking in the US military: first, all recruits are required not to smoke; Subsequently, on all US military bases, warships and planes, military personnel were prohibited from using any type of tobacco; Expand treatment programs to help military addicts quit smoking.
Both traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes will be strictly controlled.
In May 2010, the navy proposed that new regulations would be formulated to prohibit soldiers from smoking in submarines.
In April 2016, the then Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter proposed new measures to restrict soldiers from smoking and asked the Pentagon to make specific plans.
Specifically, it mainly involves the following aspects:
:: Annual Tobacco Use Prevention Strategic Plan
The Ministry of National Defense issues the "Annual Tobacco Use Prevention Strategic Plan" every year, setting the proportion of reducing the smoking rate of soldiers in that year; Invest a huge sum of money in hospitals, buy all kinds of smoking cessation supplies and drugs, help military personnel who smoke quit smoking, and treat those who suffer from diseases caused by smoking.
For soldiers who are always ready to fight, the plan lists many direct benefits of quitting smoking, such as: improving vigilance and cognitive function; Improve visual performance and provide night vision ability; Improve the ability to cope with stress; Enhance vital capacity; Increase the ability of sports coordination; Improve physical endurance; Reduce the absenteeism rate.
:: Raise the age threshold for purchasing tobacco.
With regard to the minimum age of tobacco buyers, American states have different regulations:
Forty-six States plus Washington, D.C., stipulate that people over the age of 18 can buy cigarettes;
Alabama, Alaska, New Jersey and Utah raised the age of buying tobacco to 19;
Hawaii, New York and parts of Massachusetts are 21 years old.
In recent years, American smokers have shown a trend of youthfulness. The Army Public Health Center said in the 2018 Army Health Report that among the active soldiers who used tobacco in the report, the number of people under the age of 25 was the largest, accounting for about 23%.
In December 2019, the US Food and Drug Administration officially changed the federal minimum age for purchasing tobacco from 18 to 21; When selling tobacco products to people under the age of 21, dealers must check their photo ID cards. It is illegal for people under the age threshold to buy and use tobacco, and they are generally sentenced to community service. If drugs are mixed into cigarettes, they will be disposed of according to law.
But Gary Riddy, CEO of the American Cancer Society, said: "Raising the age does not solve the main problem."
* Increase the price of cigarettes.
A veteran who participated in the Vietnam War recalled that when he was serving in a submarine, 10 packs of cigarettes (200 cigarettes) cost only $1.05. Almost everyone smoked because it was too cheap, which helped to kill time and eliminate fear.
In order to encourage soldiers to quit smoking, the Ministry of National Defense has raised the price of tobacco in military stores several years ago, and the sales of traditional tobacco in military bases have declined. In the stores (supermarkets) of the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps, the sales volume decreased by nearly half from 2011 to 2017, and the sales volume of naval stores decreased by about one third.
* Expand the area of smoke-free areas.
Since late March 2015, the Air Force has banned smoking in entertainment places in military bases such as beaches, parks, bowling alleys and basketball courts. The regulations cover military personnel, civilian personnel, contractors and their families. Since 2016, American soldiers are forbidden to smoke during exercises and basic training, but military bases have special smoking areas for soldiers to use during their leisure time.
At present, the military and hospitals, clinics and pet hospitals affiliated to the Department of Veterans Affairs have clearly stipulated a total ban on smoking, including cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, cigars, pipes and electronic cigarettes.
* Remove electronic cigarettes from the cabinet.
In 2019, after the first death case related to e-cigarettes appeared in the United States, Michigan and Massachusetts announced that they would suspend the sale of all e-cigarette products, while New York prohibited the sale of scented e-cigarettes, and Wal-Mart also announced that they would stop selling e-cigarettes.
Immediately, officials of the Naval Trading Service Command decided that "out of great caution", stores operated by the navy will no longer sell e-cigarettes from October 1, 2020; Shops operated by the Army and Air Force will also remove e-cigarette products from the shelves and close their business on September 30.
five
It is difficult to ban smoking, and it is difficult to go to the sky.
In addition to the above-mentioned measures to start with tobacco, various services of the US military have also carried out targeted smoking cessation education activities.
At the logistics base in barstow, California, the Marine Corps has been carrying out the "Smoke-free Marine Corps Action" (or "Smoke-free Zone Action") plan for several years, which was jointly completed by the tobacco treatment expert program of Florida State University Medical College and the Smoking Cessation Clinic of Tampa Veterans Affairs Bureau Medical Center, aiming at helping the Marines quit smoking completely.
The plan includes all kinds of nicotine replacement therapy, using drugs, patches, chewing gum or buccal tablets to help nicotine withdrawal, counselors distributing manuals to smokers in the base, providing guidance and interaction at any time, conducting regular carbon monoxide tests and follow-up, and communicating smoking cessation by telephone.
Bremerton Naval Hospital holds the "Great American Quitting Smoking Campaign" every year, calling on smokers to stop smoking for one day, observe their physical changes, and seek ways to quit smoking with the help of doctors.
A soldier is reading smoking cessation materials.
In addition, most US military bases, including overseas bases, offer smoking cessation courses, which usually last for several weeks. Doctors are specially hired to provide hope, advice and medication for smokers to reduce their addiction. Some bases also set up smoking cessation hotlines and websites to provide information for smokers.
Army smoking cessation expert (left) provides drug help to smokers.
US military health officials believe that an active lifestyle can help people stay away from tobacco.
Exercise and meditation can increase human energy, enhance self-confidence, release endorphins to manage stress, improve body structure, improve vital capacity, heart strength and cell repair of newly oxygenated blood, improve sleep mode, help lower blood pressure and slow down the formation of plaque blocking arteries.
Diet is equally important for quitting smoking. Eating foods rich in vitamins and minerals, whole grains, lean meat, green leafy vegetables, low-fat dairy products and fruits rich in antioxidants, including nuts, seeds from plants, berries, chicken, fish and beans, can help keep energetic and provide the body with the nutrients it needs.
Despite this, smoking in the US military has been repeatedly banned. The reason is not difficult to understand:
First, tobacco has a very long history in the US military, and it is a "standard" in combat. From generals to soldiers, smoking has become a tradition, and in recent years, it has shown an obvious trend of younger smokers.
Second, it is militancy. American military bases are spread all over the world, especially front-line troops, who are always in combat, fighting in the front line and accustomed to bloody soldiers, are under great physical and mental pressure, and often need to relax and relieve their fears through smoking.
The war also produced a large number of disabled veterans all over the United States. Many of them have no stable income, wandering the streets, and some suffer from severe depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and other diseases, and need to rely on drugs all day long. Quite a few people can’t get help. They rely on cheap cigarettes to relieve pain and paralyze themselves for a long time, and some even die of drug addiction by doping drugs in cigarettes.
It is a good idea for the US military to ban smoking. However, are American officers and men who are constantly sent by the president and the government to fight in strange countries and regions grateful and can they give up their dependence on cigarettes? This question mark is still very big!
Original title: "US military, declare war! 》
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