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premises is paid for by the firms concerned and is not a charge
on the rates.
Insect Pests
Residents are able to have insect pests identified and advice
is given as to the best methods for their eradication. Unusual
specimens are sent to the British Museum (Natural History Section)
for identification and I am most grateful to them for their willing
and valuable assistance.
Control of Birds
Under Section 74 of the Public Health Act, 1961, the Local
Authority is given power to take steps for the purpose of abating
or mitigating nuisance or damage caused by the congregation in any
built-up area of house doves or pigeons or of starlings or sparrows.
The Local Authority using these powers will not be subject to
the provisions of the Larceny Act, 1861, but they must take all
reasonable precautions to ensure that seizure and destruction of
the birds are carried out humanely. Further, the Local Authority
must believe that the birds concerned have no owner, and they must
not destroy birds which are subject to the Protection of Birds
Act, 1954.
It follows that care must be taken, before the powers are
used, fully to examine the position.
HEALTH EDUCATION
Smoking and Health
Medical opinion, in 1957, condemned the smoking habit as being
injurious to health, and early in 1962 a report published by the
Royal College of Physicians on "Smoking and Health" stressed this
fact more forcibly.
The report considers the subject under many headings, such as
the history of smoking, present smoking habits, the chemistry and
pharmacology of smoking, smoking and lung cancer, and the relationship
of smoking with other diseases. It gives much factual and
statistical evidence, and after a very full interpretation of all
the evidence, concludes as follows:-
The benefits of smoking are almost entirely psychological
and social. It may help some people to avoid obesity. There
is no reason to suppose that smoking prevents neurosis.
Cigarette smoking is a cause of lung cancer and bronchitis
and probably contributes to the development of coronary heart
disease and various other less common diseases. It also
delays healing of gastric and duodenal ulcers.
The risks of smoking to the individual are calculated from
death rates in relation to smoking habits among British
doctors. The chance of dying in the next ten years for a man
aged 35 who is a heavy cigarette smoker is 1 in 23 whereas
the risk for a non-smoker is only 1 in 90. Only 15 per cent
(one in six) of men of this age who are non-smokers but 33 per
cent (one in three) of heavy smokers will die before the
age of 65. Not all this difference in expectation of life
is attributable to smoking.
The number of deaths caused by diseases associated with
smoking is large. Such diseases are Bronchitis, Coronary
Heart Disease, Gastric and Duodenal Ulcer.
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