Minnesota Smoking Somalis Humanitarian Crisis. The American Journal of Preventive Medicine Publishes a Lie and Will Not Correct It

A study (Tobacco Use and Cessation Among Somalis in Minnesota) published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine recently “revealed”:

“the small, but increasing, body of literature on water-pipe smoking demonstrates similar and, in some cases, greater detrimental health effects than cigarette smoking”.

This tough statement is supported by references to four studies: among them (because the three other papers are famous for their inaccuracy and numerous errors) the pioneering one led by our friends and commented on the Observatory: Historic Study on Hookah Smoking and Cancer

“[This study on hookah and cancer] while offering a useful and updated review of the related scientific literature, including a critique of the 3 above references, did not suggest that hookah health effects are similar or more harmful than those associated with cigarette smoking. Indeed, this study stresses that the bowl of the pipes smoked by exclusive ever hookah smokers volunteers over decades usually contains the tobacco-weight equivalent of 60 cigarettes. In spite of this striking aspect, CEA (CarcinoEmbryonic Antigen) levels were found to be much lower among hookah users than among cigarette smokers”.

Do you know what ? the above comment (was sent to the journal (January 21, 2009). As expected, it was rejected (blatant censorship) by the Editor in chief who decided to leave the errors as they are: uncommented (March 20, 2009).

And they call this science, “peer reviewed” science ! We call this behavior (widely prevalent among anti-tobacco journals): “sweep-it-under-the-rug” science ! They actually trample the very ethical principles they feign to be guided by (COPE, ICMJE, etc.).

To top it all, it appears from the exchange of notes between the critique of the Minnesota Smoking Somalis study and the journal (research teams from the University of California at San Diego) that the staff there (“peer-reviewers” and Editors) and the authors of course, had not read more than the abstract of the study !

What they actually offered to boobies is the above serious misinterpretation (they make the study on hookah and cancer say Black while it says White !) because it is in tune with their declared war on tobacco and its users. Sometimes, they feign to be concerned by the health of UK immigrants (particularly on the eve of a national ban...), others by the welfare of Somali hookah smokers in Minnesota...

RELEVANT READINGS:

The “Nicotine and Tobacco Research” Journal Endorses a Scientific Error as Big and Carcinogenic as a Yemeni Narghile Bowl !

The International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease Publishes a Junk Pakistani ““Waterpipe””™ Study and another one Citing a Junk Reference

International Journal of Public Health Endorses Multiple Errors by US-American University of Beirut Team. Violation of Biomedical Publication Ethics

"United Kingdom Ban on Smoking in General and on Hookah Smoking in Particular Should NOT Stay", Analysts Say

YOU ARE NOT ON THE HOME PAGE of the OBSERVATORY on HOOKAH OR HEALTH (Narghile, "Waterpipe"™, Health, Risks, Dangers, Diseases, Tar, Nicotine, Cancer). CLICK HERE to go there !