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[size=85:3lv07uvc]novinite 03 May 2010

Bulgaria's Oldest Restaurant Institutes Full Smoking Ban

The management of one of Bulgaria's oldest and most popular restaurants in downtown Sofia - (Crimea) has decided to impose full smoking ban inside the establishment.

The management sent a letter to the media notifying that beginning June 1, 2010, smoking is not allowed anywhere in the building, except in the outside garden tables and despite the recent decision by the parliamentary majority from the Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) party to eliminate the full smoking ban voted by the previous Parliament and supposed to become effective in the beginning of June. The ban was postponed for an undetermined time period and the current orders to have separate smoking and non-smoking rooms remained.

The decision was made unanimously. We are convinced it is the right one and we hope our example would be followed by other restaurant owners, the press release reads.

Krim,formerly the Russian Club, is situated he very heart of Sofia, inside one of the most beautiful buildings in Bulgaria's capital.

It dates from 1910 and was built by Teodor Teodorov - a distinguished Russophile, Member of the Parliament and Prime Minister of Bulgaria. Over the years the restaurant kept its fame of being one of the top attractions for bohemians in Sofia. Its regular guests included and include famous authors, artists, actors, musicians, politicians and sport stars. Ornella Mutti, Barbara de Rossi, Catherine Deneuve, Sandrine Bonnaire, Morgan Freeman, Roy Scheider, as well as film directors- Luigi Perelli, Claude Brasseur, Krzysztof Zanussi, Nikita Mikhalkov and Andrei Konchalovsky have all dined there.

I can't resist a reply on the smoking ban. Right from the first when the law was introduced in Britain, I never understood why. After all, smoking and drinking puts loads of tax in the Govenment's coffers. By supposedly keeping smokers out of hospital and off the NHS, it is helping us all to live longer and thus causing the aging problem and how to finance all us long-livers. A shot in the foot maybe? If people don't like smokers its obvious to me that there is a middle road. All public places should have a smoking and non-smoking area. This stupid law is bankrupting so many businesses in already difficult times. I hear that drinking is going under attack now. Why is it so necessary to make everyone live longer? So go on, have that cigarette and beer if you want and do the country a favour by not needing old-age accommodation which neither they nor the State will be able to afford.
I long ago gave up smoking but I might just start again for the hell of it. The human race has survived this long and I have no wish to live to 100 and be a burden to anyone.

oldun wrote:

I long ago gave up smoking but I might just start again for the hell of it.

Bravo oldun

I've stayed out of this subject myself as it can easily become a political debate and/or a 'pro' vs 'anti'-smoker topic.

I smoke (about five a day) and my wife smokes (a bit more than I). We never smoke in the house, only in the garden and we respect the 'non-smoking' laws whenever we go to a bar or restaurant.

I think pubs, bars, cafés and restaurants should either:
a. be allowed to have both smoking and non smoking rooms and people take their pick
or
b. declare themselves a 'smoking' or 'no smoking' establishment (with big warnings on the door) and let their clientele decide if they want to visit or not

The day I go to a bar and can't 'drink' in public will be the day that the World really has lost the plot (if it hasn't already?)

PS. As I'm on the soapbox [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I smoke five cigarettes a day maximum and sometimes can do 3 or 4 days without even one.

Therefore, I know I could easily give up right now, if I wanted to ... which I don't. I actually enjoy my cigarette with a cup of coffee after my meal. I don't bug anybody, I never smoke near anybody and I'm not remotely worried about the effect on my health.

The only reason I would give up is because I resent the ever increasing taxes that the government(s) are shoving in their pockets due to the folks that enjoy a tab now and again. I know there are far worse than me that are actually 'addicted' to the stuff, and probably throwing far more tax away than I, however, at the moment, whilst they're affordable, I shall have one, two or even five a day (usually on weekends) and enjoy them.

One small thought ... if they do 'ban' smoking altogether ... where do they get the millions from that the tobacco taxes currently bring in?

Or perhaps, they should stop the 'binge-drinking' in various EU countries and save a fortune of Police / Medic / Ambulance / Hospital time and money from folks getting hammered and then fighting / throwing up in the streets, which I find far more distasteful than somebody smoking nearby.

Rant Over! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

PPS. I'm now going to sit in the sun, with a small glass of white wine and light a cigarette, my first of the day. And, I'm pretty sure I will enjoy both the wine and the tobacco

:Good post:Good on you Chris! Refreshing change from the sanctimonious lot who favour a total ban. Is that long word spelt right???

Chris wrote:

PS. As I'm on the soapbox [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I smoke five cigarettes a day maximum and sometimes can do 3 or 4 days without even one.

Therefore, I know I could easily give up right now, if I wanted to ... which I don't. I actually enjoy my cigarette with a cup of coffee after my meal. I don't bug anybody, I never smoke near anybody and I'm not remotely worried about the effect on my health.

The only reason I would give up is because I resent the ever increasing taxes that the government(s) are shoving in their pockets due to the folks that enjoy a tab now and again. I know there are far worse than me that are actually 'addicted' to the stuff, and probably throwing far more tax away than I, however, at the moment, whilst they're affordable, I shall have one, two or even five a day (usually on weekends) and enjoy them.

One small thought ... if they do 'ban' smoking altogether ... where do they get the millions from that the tobacco taxes currently bring in?

Or perhaps, they should stop the 'binge-drinking' in various EU countries and save a fortune of Police / Medic / Ambulance / Hospital time and money from folks getting hammered and then fighting / throwing up in the streets, which I find far more distasteful than somebody smoking nearby.

Rant Over! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Excellent Chris if only more would speak out like this

meandmine wrote:

Chris wrote:

PS. As I'm on the soapbox [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I smoke five cigarettes a day maximum and sometimes can do 3 or 4 days without even one.

Therefore, I know I could easily give up right now, if I wanted to ... which I don't. I actually enjoy my cigarette with a cup of coffee after my meal. I don't bug anybody, I never smoke near anybody and I'm not remotely worried about the effect on my health.

The only reason I would give up is because I resent the ever increasing taxes that the government(s) are shoving in their pockets due to the folks that enjoy a tab now and again. I know there are far worse than me that are actually 'addicted' to the stuff, and probably throwing far more tax away than I, however, at the moment, whilst they're affordable, I shall have one, two or even five a day (usually on weekends) and enjoy them.

One small thought ... if they do 'ban' smoking altogether ... where do they get the millions from that the tobacco taxes currently bring in?

Or perhaps, they should stop the 'binge-drinking' in various EU countries and save a fortune of Police / Medic / Ambulance / Hospital time and money from folks getting hammered and then fighting / throwing up in the streets, which I find far more distasteful than somebody smoking nearby.

Rant Over! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Excellent Chris if only more would speak out like this

I think every thing that has been written here is common sense and the majority would not object to you Chris or anybody enjoying a fag because you are not dependant on the toxic oily liquid called nicotine and you are not forcing it on to anybody else
I think the issue is more about the chain smokers who have no regard for anybody else and think it is their right to share their addiction
As I have said elsewhere I have a Son who smokes, my wife and I haven't kicked him out of the house because he respects our wishes and smoke's outside or in the garage. If he gets enjoyment and satisfaction spending his hard earned money on cig's, that is up to him
Smoking is and always will be an ongoing issue in society. I say live and let live

Although I don't smoke any longer and haven't done so for 30 years I also say live and let live but I don't see that the Bulgarians will give up, you only have to go into some of the café's and bars to see that and I include the owners so what chance has this law of working ?

This might interest those of you who want to stop ???

Placebo-Controlled Trial of Cytisine for Smoking Cessation

[size=85:26f3iorf]Robert West, Ph.D., Witold Zatonski, M.D., Magdalena Cedzynska, M.A., Dorota Lewandowska, Ph.D., M.D., Joanna Pazik, Ph.D., M.D., Paul Aveyard, Ph.D., M.D., and John Stapleton, M.Sc.N Engl J Med 2011;
365:1193-1200

Placebo-Controlled Trial of Cytisine for Smoking Cessation

Robert West, Ph.D., Witold Zatonski, M.D., Magdalena Cedzynska, M.A., Dorota Lewandowska, Ph.D., M.D., Joanna Pazik, Ph.D., M.D., Paul Aveyard, Ph.D., M.D., and John Stapleton, M.Sc.

N Engl J Med 2011;
365:1193-1200September 29, 2011

Background

Cytisine, a partial agonist that binds with high affinity to the α4β2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, is a low-cost treatment that may be effective in aiding smoking cessation. This study assessed the efficacy and safety of cytisine as compared with placebo.

Methods

We conducted a single-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Participants were randomly assigned to receive cytisine or matching placebo for 25 days;
participants in both groups received a minimal amount of counseling during the study. The primary outcome measure was sustained, biochemically verified smoking abstinence for 12 months after the end of treatment. Of 1542 adult smokers screened, 740 were enrolled and 370 were randomly assigned to each study group.

Results

The rate of sustained 12-month abstinence was 8.4% (31 participants) in the cytisine group as compared with 2.4% (9 participants) in the placebo group (difference, 6.0 percentage points;
95% confidence interval [CI], 2.7 to 9.2;
P=0.001). The 7-day point prevalence for abstinence at the 12-month follow-up was 13.2% in the cytisine group versus 7.3% in the placebo group (P=0.01). Gastrointestinal adverse events were reported more frequently in the cytisine group (difference, 5.7 percentage points;
95% CI, 1.2 to 10.2).
Conclusions

In this single-center study, cytisine was more effective than placebo for smoking cessation. The lower price of cytisine as compared with that of other pharmacotherapies for smoking cessation may make it an affordable treatment to advance smoking cessation globally. (Funded by the National Prevention Research Initiative and others;
Current Controlled Trials number, ISRCTN37568749.)

Supported by a grant from the United Kingdom National Prevention Research Initiative (to Dr. West), which included contributions from the British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government Health Directorates, Department of Health, Diabetes UK, Economic and Social Research Council, Research and Development Office of Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland, Medical Research Council, and Welsh Assembly;
and by grants from Cancer Research UK (to Dr. West and Mr. Stapleton) and the National Institute for Health Research (to Dr. Aveyard).

Disclosure forms provided by the authors are available with the full text of this article at NEJM.org.

We thank the members of the Trial Steering Committee (Michael Ussher, Lindsay Stead, Elspeth Lee, Robert Hewings, Martin Edwards, and Dorota Olszak);
the members of the Data Monitoring and Ethics Committee (Peter Hajek, Ann McNeill, and Lesley Owen);
the doctors (Ewelina Bobek-Pstrucha, Joanna Jonska, Elzbieta Karpinska, Marzena Piasecka, Joanna Surowinska, Ewelina Sliwka, Olga Tronina, and Ewa Wazna), nurses (Teresa Kankiewicz, Mirosława Kleszcz, Katarzyna Marczyk, Elzbieta Milkowska, Malgorzata Pokorska, Dorota Sadowska, and Magdalena Starosciak), psychologists and therapists (Anna Blogosz, Anna Debska, Justyna Koziorowska, Marta Porebiak, Irena Przepiorka, and Agnieszka Smolinska), and secretarial staff (Halina Gaj, Joanna Szwechowicz, and Ewa Tarnowska) who assisted with the conduct of the trial;
Ognyan Donev of Sopharma for performing the randomization and providing study medication;
and Prof. Piotr Tutka for his help and advice before and during the study.

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oddball wrote:

:shocked1:How will they survive ::

oddy

oddy, you ask, how will they survive, here is the answer maybe

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] ... YzN3Aydz09

What do you think

willowsend wrote:

oddball wrote:

:shocked1:How will they survive ::

oddy

oddy, you ask, how will they survive, here is the answer maybe

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] ... YzN3Aydz09

What do you think

Sounds good to me Willow : A friend has these and she is getting on well but say the cartridge tips are around £30 to renew. Guess it depends on if you intend on continuing or giving up smoking eh!!! She says the smoke is like the steam from the kettle and there is no smell definitely 100% better.

The latest from Sofia Echo
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