Abstract
OBJECTIVES: This study examined the accessibility and appeal to youth of cigar marketing sites on the Internet. METHODS: Sites marketing cigars (n = 141) were examined for age restrictions, prices, health warnings, and other elements. RESULTS: Although it is illegal for minors to purchase tobacco, only 36 sites (25.5%) prohibited purchases by minors. Sites offered low prices, and 32% accepted money orders, cashier's checks, or cash-on-delivery (COD) orders. Almost 30% of the sites included elements with potential youth appeal; only 3.5% displayed health warnings. CONCLUSIONS: The unregulated promotion of cigars on the Internet has the potential to attract youth, and there are few barriers to Internet tobacco purchases by minors.
Full Text
The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (184.2 KB).
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Altman D. G., Levine D. W., Coeytaux R., Slade J., Jaffe R. Tobacco promotion and susceptibility to tobacco use among adolescents aged 12 through 17 years in a nationally representative sample. Am J Public Health. 1996 Nov;86(11):1590–1593. doi: 10.2105/ajph.86.11.1590. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Chow W. H., Schuman L. M., McLaughlin J. K., Bjelke E., Gridley G., Wacholder S., Chien H. T., Blot W. J. A cohort study of tobacco use, diet, occupation, and lung cancer mortality. Cancer Causes Control. 1992 May;3(3):247–254. doi: 10.1007/BF00124258. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- De Stefani E., Barrios E., Fierro L. Black (air-cured) and blond (flue-cured) tobacco and cancer risk. III: Oesophageal cancer. Eur J Cancer. 1993;29A(5):763–766. doi: 10.1016/s0959-8049(05)80363-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- DiFranza J. R., Richards J. W., Paulman P. M., Wolf-Gillespie N., Fletcher C., Jaffe R. D., Murray D. RJR Nabisco's cartoon camel promotes camel cigarettes to children. JAMA. 1991 Dec 11;266(22):3149–3153. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Franceschi S., Barra S., La Vecchia C., Bidoli E., Negri E., Talamini R. Risk factors for cancer of the tongue and the mouth. A case-control study from northern Italy. Cancer. 1992 Nov 1;70(9):2227–2233. doi: 10.1002/1097-0142(19921101)70:9<2227::aid-cncr2820700902>3.0.co;2-z. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Heineman E. F., Zahm S. H., McLaughlin J. K., Vaught J. B. Increased risk of colorectal cancer among smokers: results of a 26-year follow-up of US veterans and a review. Int J Cancer. 1994 Dec 15;59(6):728–738. doi: 10.1002/ijc.2910590603. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Hirayama T. Non-smoking wives of heavy smokers have a higher risk of lung cancer: a study from Japan. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1981 Jan 17;282(6259):183–185. doi: 10.1136/bmj.282.6259.183. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Kune G. A., Kune S., Vitetta L., Watson L. F. Smoking and colorectal cancer risk: data from the Melbourne Colorectal Cancer Study and brief review of literature. Int J Cancer. 1992 Feb 1;50(3):369–372. doi: 10.1002/ijc.2910500307. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Lubin J. H., Richter B. S., Blot W. J. Lung cancer risk with cigar and pipe use. J Natl Cancer Inst. 1984 Aug;73(2):377–381. doi: 10.1093/jnci/73.2.377. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Muscat J. E., Wynder E. L. Tobacco, alcohol, asbestos, and occupational risk factors for laryngeal cancer. Cancer. 1992 May 1;69(9):2244–2251. doi: 10.1002/1097-0142(19920501)69:9<2244::aid-cncr2820690906>3.0.co;2-o. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Thomas D. B., Jimenez L. M., McTiernan A., Rosenblatt K., Stalsberg H., Stemhagen A., Thompson W. D., Curnen M. G., Satariano W., Austin D. F. Breast cancer in men: risk factors with hormonal implications. Am J Epidemiol. 1992 Apr 1;135(7):734–748. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a116360. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Wyatt J. C. Commentary: measuring quality and impact of the World Wide Web. BMJ. 1997 Jun 28;314(7098):1879–1881. doi: 10.1136/bmj.314.7098.1879. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]