Safer than cigarettes? No vaping way

By Kimberly Nelson

August 16, 2018

Categories: Cancer  /  News

It’s touted as a safe alternative to cigarettes. But is vaping really that harmless? The short answer, says pediatrician Dr. Ryan Van Ramshorst, is no. Vaping is the inhalation of aerosol produced by an electronic cigarette when it heats nicotine and other chemicals. It differs from traditional cigarettes in that there is no smoke inhaled, only water vapor. While cigarettes contain over 7,000 chemicals, including nicotine, it is unknown how many chemicals are in an e-cigarette. “The ‘vapor’ released from an electronic nicotine delivery system, or E.N.D.S., is not actually a vapor, but an aerosol that contains numerous airway irritants …Read More >

Tags: cancer, smoking, vaping

Lowering blood pressure one roadblock at a time

By UHS News Team

Feb. 23, 2018

Categories: Heart Health  /  News  /  Wellness

To get James Robbins’ high blood pressure under control, the first step was to help him quit smoking. But to reach that point required a bit of soul searching on Mr. Robbins’ part. He had long known he had high blood pressure. But had managed to ignore the significance of his condition for some years, even trying to game the regular physicals that were required for his work as a commercial diver. “I’d kind of starve myself and I wouldn’t drink sodas before the physicals,” Mr. Robbins said. “I’d have them do the tests manually, which brings it down a …Read More >

Tags: high blood pressure, hypertension, smoking

A campaign for smoke-free kids

By UHS News Team

Sept. 15, 2017

Categories: Children's Health  /  Heart Health  /  News

San Antonio’s health director, Colleen Bridger, said this week she wants to raise the age limit for buying tobacco products in the city from 18 to 21 — a campaign known as Tobacco 21. “When you look at what we haven’t yet achieved, (Tobacco 21) is the single most important public health policy we can pass,” Bridger told the Rivard Report. The San Antonio Metropolitan Health District is measuring community support for raising the age limit, with the idea of enacting a local ordinance by the end of the year. Parents probably won’t mind getting a little help in trying …Read More >

Tags: ciarettes, smoking, vaping

Making e-cigarettes less appealing to teens

By UHS News Team

Jan. 20, 2016

Categories: Cancer  /  Children's Health  /  Heart Health  /  News

Many kids think e-cigs are a healthy alternative to smoking cigarettes. That’s no surprise, said Dr. Ryan Van Ramshorst of University Health System’s Community Medicine Associates. Talking to KSAT’s Adrian Garcia about a CDC report on rising e-cigarette use among youth in the United States, Dr. Van Ramshorst predicted the numbers will get worse before they get better, but that legislation can help. “I think at least in the short term (youth e-cigarette use) is going to continue to increase,” Dr. Van Ramshorst said, “and a big factor contributing to this is the advertising that’s being put forth by the …Read More >

Tags: e-cigarettes, smoking, teens, vape

A resolution to kick the habit

By UHS News Team

Jan. 13, 2016

Categories: Cancer  /  Heart Health  /  News  /  Wellness

This is a time of year that Rafael Velasco, a health educator with University Health System, gets a flurry of inquiries from people who want to quit smoking. “It’s resolutions,” Velasco said. It’s not unusual for a number of those resolvers to drop off pretty quickly. “With human behavior, it’s very difficult to curb a lot of the things we do.” But tobacco cessation doesn’t have to mean cold turkey. In fact, that doesn’t work so well for many smokers, such as those who have smoked a pack or two a day for 10 or 20 years. Quitting completely and …Read More >

Tags: cigarettes, smoking, tobacco

Smoking and drug use tied to stillbirths

By UHS News Team

Categories: News  /  Pregnancy

For several years, a national study that includes San Antonio-area hospitals has been trying to get at one of the most difficult and devastating questions in pregnancy – what can be done to prevent stillbirths? The study’s latest findings point to one answer that shouldn’t come as much of a surprise: avoid tobacco and illicit drugs, including marijuana. The Stillbirth Collaborative Research Network looked at hundreds of live births and stillbirths in five regions across the country, including San Antonio, between 2006 and 2008. In most cases, they were able to perform tests for the presence of drugs and nicotine.  They …Read More >

Tags: children's health, drug use, obstetrics, pregnancy, research, smoking, stillbirth