Continuing annual tobacco tax increases: New modelling of the likely impact

Saturday, May 28th, 2016 | Nick Wilson | No Comments

Ms Frederieke Sanne van der Deen, Professor Nick Wilson, Professor Tony Blakely

On Thursday the NZ Government announced it would continue it’s programme of yearly 10% tobacco tax increases for the years 2017 to 2020 inclusive. Using our peer-reviewed BODE3 forecasting model, we project that with these additional four years of tax increases smoking prevalence in 2020 will be 21.4% for Māori and to 8.9% for non-Māori – compared to a projected 22.7% and 9.3% if this taxation programme had not continued beyond January 2016. Prevalence reductions may be greater if we hit a ‘tipping point’ – our modelling necessarily uses responsiveness to tax seen in the past. Thus the further tax increases will help us get to a tobacco-free NZ by 2025, but more ‘endgame’ strategies are almost certainly also needed.

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Introducing an Online Data Explorer Tool: 30 years of NZ mortality and cancer data

Wednesday, May 25th, 2016 | Kate Sloane | No Comments

Dr George Disney, Dr Andrea Teng, Prof Nick Wilson, Prof Tony Blakely

Data Explorer blogThere are striking inequalities in cancer incidence and mortality in NZ, by both ethnicity and socioeconomic status. In this blog, we introduce an interactive online tool that enables anyone from researchers, policy-makers, journalists and health practitioners to access high quality data on these vital, population-level health statistics. Examples we use include: massive declines in cardiovascular disease inequality, but still large inequalities such as widening gaps in mortality for diseases consistent with the obesity epidemic; and the fact that adults aged 25-44 years with no formal qualifications have had very little mortality decline in the last 30 years, begging the question “Why?”.

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Worth its weight: Building Insulation in New Zealand

Monday, May 23rd, 2016 | Kate Sloane | 1 Comment

Dr Kimberley O’Sullivan

Insulation blog

Source: http://www.sustainability.vic.gov.au/services-and-advice/households/energy-efficiency/toolbox/how-to/check-your-ceiling-insulation

Building insulation provides comfort and health benefits to occupants, saves energy, enhances energy security, and can reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This blog looks at these issues and wonders why the NZ Government is not doing more to enhance building performance and insulation standards when it is such a good investment.

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Progress on Reducing Retail Availability of Sugary Drinks in NZ

Monday, May 16th, 2016 | Kate Sloane | No Comments

Prof Nick Wilson, Dr Cristina Cleghorn, Dr Andrea Teng, Dr Rob Beaglehole, Prof Tony Blakely

water_vending_machine_bottle_washing_mode_with_ce_isoNew Zealand has made some progress in removing the sale of sugary drinks from hospitals and schools. In this blog we look at such successes to date and consider what could be done to further reduce availability of these products which are both harming oral health and fuelling the obesity epidemic.

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