"Keep a low profile": pesticide residue, additives, and freon use in Australian tobacco manufacturing.

Objectives: To review the Australian tobacco industry's knowledge of pesticide residue on Australian tobacco and its policies and practices on resisting calls by tobacco control advocates that consumers should be informed about pesticide residue as well as additives.

Methods: Review of previously internal industry documents relevant to pesticides and additives in Australian tobacco located from the Master Settlement Agreement websites.

Results: Between 1972 and 1994 Philip Morris Australia was aware that its leaf samples were often contaminated with pesticide residue, sometimes including organochlorine levels described by PM's European laboratories as being "extremely high".

"We are anxious to remain anonymous": the use of third party scientific and medical consultants by the Australian tobacco industry, 1969 to 1979.

Objective: To document the history of visits to Australia by tobacco industry sponsored scientists and news media reports about smoking and health matters generated by their visits.

Design: Systematic keyword and opportunistic website searches of tobacco industry internal documents made available through the Master Settlement Agreement.

Results: At least nine sponsored scientists visited Australia from 1969 until 1979.

"It is possible he is a kind of nut": how the tobacco industry quietly promoted Dr William Whitby.

Dr William Whitby was a general practitioner in Sydney who, from 1978 until about 1987, self published two books extolling the virtues of smoking and ridiculing anti-smoking claims. Privately the tobacco industry regarded him as "nutty", while nonetheless believing that his views should be promoted. They quietly supported him by distributing his book, offering legal advice, and persuading him to take media training.

Socioeconomic status and tobacco expenditure among Australian households: results from the 1998-99 Household Expenditure Survey.

Objective: To investigate the relation between socioeconomic status (SES) and tobacco expenditure among Australian households.

Design And Setting: Cross sectional study (The Household Expenditure Survey 1998-99) by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, based on a multi-stage national sample of 9682 households.

Participants: From selected households, all members aged 15 and over were interviewed.

Factors associated with smoking cessation in a national sample of Australians.

The association of sociodemographic and selected behavioral and social environmental factors with successful smoking cessation was examined using cross-sectional data from the 1998 Australian National Drug Strategy Household Survey, which used an area multistage stratified design. Data collection involved a mixture of interviews and self-administered questionnaires. We used a subsample of 2,526 Australians aged 14 years and older.

Impact of tobacco tax reforms on tobacco prices and tobacco use in Australia.

Objective: To document the impact of changes to tobacco taxes on the range and price of tobacco sold during the period when the National Tobacco Campaign (NTC) was run.

Data Sources: Information about brand availability, pack size, and price was extracted from Australian Retail Tobacconist. A retail observational survey was undertaken to monitor actual retail prices.

Understanding how mass media campaigns impact on smokers.

Objectives: To explore the immediate impact of the 2001 National Tobacco Campaign (NTC) advertising on movement towards quitting in a broadly representative sample of smokers.

Method: Repeated measures design with surveys two weeks apart. 1000 current smokers aged 18-40 were interviewed.

The effectiveness of personalized smoking cessation strategies for callers to a Quitline service.

Aim: To assess the effectiveness of a program of computer-generated tailored advice for callers to a telephone helpline, and to assess whether it enhanced a series of callback telephone counselling sessions in aiding smoking cessation.

Design: Randomized controlled trial comparing: (1) untailored self-help materials; (2) computer-generated tailored advice only, and (3) computer-generated tailored advice plus callback telephone counselling. Assessment surveys were conducted at baseline, 3, 6 and 12 months.

Smoking and financial stress.

Aim: Stress relief is commonly provided as a reason for smoking. However, it is plausible that the cost of smoking may create financial stress, particularly among the poor. The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between smoking and financial stress.

Review of the quality of studies on the economic effects of smoke-free policies on the hospitality industry.

Objective: To compare the quality and funding source of studies concluding a negative economic impact of smoke-free policies in the hospitality industry to studies concluding no such negative impact.

Data Sources: Researchers sought all studies produced before 31 August 2002. Articles published in scientific journals were located with Medline, Science Citation Index, Social Sciences Citation Index, Current Contents, PsychInfo, Econlit, and Healthstar.

Sociodemographic predictors of pap test receipt, currency and knowledge among Australian women.

Background: Knowledge of sociodemographic variations in cervical cancer screening can help identify population groups at risk of underutilization of cervical cancer procedures and practices. The aim of this research was to examine sociodemographic predictors of receipt, currency (being up-to-date for), and knowledge of Pap test.

Methods: We used data from the 1995 National Health Survey.

Sociodemographic variations in breast cancer screening behavior among Australian women: results from the 1995 National Health Survey.

Background: Knowledge of sociodemographic variations in breast cancer screening can help identify population groups that are at risk of underutilization of breast cancer screening procedures and practices. We examined sociodemographic variations in breast cancer screening behavior among Australian women.

Methods: We used a subsample of women aged 18 years and older (n = 10,179) from the 1995 National Health Survey.

Prevalence and socio-economic correlates of smoking among lone mothers in Australia.

Objective: To report smoking prevalence among Australian lone mothers by age and socio-economic group and to examine the extent to which the difference in smoking prevalence between lone mothers and other women is due to socio-economic factors.

Methods: This was a secondary analysis of data from the 1995 National Health Survey (NHS), which was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Information was collected from 53,800 respondents using face-to-face interviews.

Socio-demographic variations in smoking status among Australians aged > or = 18: multivariate results from the 1995 National Health Survey.

Objective: To determine the association between socio-demographic variables and smoking status in a national sample of Australians aged > or = 18.

Method: The data came from the 1995 National Health Survey (NHS), which was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Information was collected from 20,165 females and 18,948 males using face-to-face interviews.

Slip! Slop! Slap! and SunSmart, 1980-2000: Skin cancer control and 20 years of population-based campaigning.

The Anti-Cancer Council of Victoria has been running sun protection programs for more than 20 years: Slip! Slop! Slap! from 1980 to 1988 and SunSmart from 1988 to the present. The Victorian Health Promotion Foundation has provided funding for the SunSmart program for the past 13 years. These programs have played an important role in changing the whole society's approach to the sun and have resulted in marked reductions in sun exposure.

A multivariate analysis of the association between social class of origin and current social class with self-rated general health and psychological health among 16-year-old Australians.

Background: A recent review of international literature concludes that there is a relative absence of social class differentials in health in early youth. There is an absence of Australian studies on the effect of social class on the health of this age group.

Aims: To examine the association between social class and health among 16-year-old Australians.