Rob Ford admits he has smoked ‘a lot’ of pot

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is adding fuel to the controversy surrounding his alleged use of illegal drugs by publicly admitting that he's smoked pot — "a lot of it."

Ford is the latest Canadian politician to make a pot confession, after Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau admitted last week that he took a pull on a joint at a dinner party three years ago, while he was an MP.

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne also came clean Wednesday that she puffed a little pot, but she said it's been 35 years since the last smoke.

Kenai Peninsula Fair goes smoke-free

In an effort to promote a healthy lifestyle, the Kenai Peninsula Fair is going smoke-free.
The fair, which opened Friday and continues through Sunday in Ninilchik, will only provide a designated smoking area near the rodeo grounds and in the beer garden, the Peninsula Clarion reported

The regional fair's move comes two years after the Alaska State Fair in Palmer went smoke-free.
Kenai Peninsula Fair Manager Lara McGinnis said the move to a smoke-free fair accomplishes three goals. It affirms a family-friendly atmosphere, reduces the potential for children to associate smoking with a healthy lifestyle, and protects fair workers and attendees from smoking and tobacco related litter and pollution, she said in a statement.

Quitting smoking post-angioplasty tied to longer life

People who quit smoking after a balloon angioplasty to improve blood flow to the heart live an average of two years longer than those who keep smoking, a new study suggests.

Researchers found people who were undergoing balloon angioplasty in their 50s, on average, and quit smoking within one year after the procedure lived another 18.5 years. In contrast, those who continued to smoke lived about 16.4 years, on average, after angioplasty.

Old tobacco playbook gets new use by e-cigarettes

Companies vying for a stake in the fast-growing electronic cigarette business are reviving the decades-old marketing tactics the tobacco industry used to hook generations of Americans on regular smokes.

They’re using cab-top and bus stop displays, sponsoring race cars and events, and encouraging smokers to ‘‘rise from the ashes’’ and take back their freedom in slick TV commercials featuring celebrities like TV personality Jenny McCarthy.

Meditation Could Help Smokers Cut Down, Study Hints

Learning a type of meditation technique might make it easier for smokers to cut down, at least on a short-term basis, new research suggests.
The finding is based on the experiences of just five smokers, and could be purely coincidental. Researchers found, however, that training other smokers how to relax had no effect on how much they smoked, a sign that there may indeed be something to the meditation approach.
So should smokers meditate if they want to smoke less?
"Sure, why not?" said study co-author Michael Posner, professor emeritus at the University of Oregon's department of psychology. "[Still], I can't say that all forms of meditation will produce these affects. It's likely that it depends on the brain state that the person is in, and there may be other ways to get into it."
Researchers have linked