His 1986 surgeon general's report on the dangers of smoking was seminal, the biography said.

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The argument was settled by the famous surgeon general's report of 1964.

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The MPAA's position doesn't go far enough to address the seriousness of smoking among young people, says Fiore, noting that a U.S. Surgeon General's report published in March concluded that smoking in movies is one of the causes of youth smoking.

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Similarly, the Surgeon General just released a report noting that smoking among teens and adults had reached epidemic proportions.

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By now, however, enough research has been done by privately funded scholars that the surgeon general could write a report based on existing material.

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This is a fact sheet of the recent full report by the Surgeon General on what is happening in teen smoking.

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This worked well until 1964, when a devastating report from the surgeon-general's advisory committee in effect ended medical uncertainty about the harmfulness of smoking.

ECONOMIST: Tobacco