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BySamHananel TheAssociatedPress WASHINGTON America's largest tobacco companies must inform consumers that cigarettes were designed to increase addiction, but not that they lied to the public about the dangers of smok- ing, a federal appeals court ruled on Friday. The ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is a partial win for cigarette makers in the long-running legal fight that began in the Clinton administration in 1999. In this latest round, the companies objected to running court-ordered ad- vertisements that would have branded themselves as liars. The ads would have be- gun with a preamble state- ment that the companies "deliberately deceived the American public." The ads stem from a 2006 court rul- ing ordering the companies to admit they had lied for decades about the dangers of smoking. The companies called that statement overbroad and misleading. But gov- ernment lawyers argued that the language was meant to provide context for the public. The appeals court ruled that the language must fo- cus on preventing future vi- olations, not past miscon- duct. Writing for the three- judge panel, Judge David Tatel said the preamble language in the ads about past deception went beyond the remedies allowed under federal racketeering laws. But Tatel said other lan- guage in the ads that stated the companies intentionally designed cigarettes with enough nicotine "to create and sustain addiction" was within the bounds of the law. The appeals court also approved statements that said the companies "inten- tionally designed cigarettes to make them more addic- tive." The companies in the case include Richmond, Virginia-based Altria Group Inc., owner of the biggest U.S. tobacco company, Philip Morris USA; No. 2 cigarette maker, R.J. Reyn- olds Tobacco Co., owned by Winston-Salem, North Carolina-based Reynolds American Inc.; and No. 3 cigarette maker Lorillard Inc., based in Greensboro, North Carolina. In 1999, the Justice De- partment filed a lawsuit that alleged the tobacco companies violated racke- teering laws by conspiring to deceive the public about the health consequences and addictiveness of smok- ing cigarettes. After hear- ing testimony from 162 wit- nesses over nine months, U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler found in 2006 that the companies had engaged in a massive fraud cam- paign. The judge ordered the companies to take out ads addressing the negative health effects of smoking, nicotine manipulation, the health impact of second- hand smoke and the truth about "light" and "low-tar" brands. The ads would ap- pear in newspapers, on TV, websites and cigarette pack inserts. While the appeals court struck down the pream- ble to the ads, it left the re- maining content largely in- tact. The case now goes back to the district court for fur- ther proceedings. Matthew Myers, presi- dent of the advocacy group Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, called the ruling "a re- sounding victory for public health," though he said he was disappointed the com- panies would not be re- quired to admit they de- ceived the public. "This decision provides a path for forcing the compa- nies to finally tell the truth about their product," said Myers, whose group was a party in the case. "It should not take long to translate this decision into a work- able order, assuming the to- bacco industry does not try to further delay." Altria spokesman Brian May said the company was pleased that the court struck down the preamble language, which he called "the critical part of the ap- peal." Follow Sam Hananel on Twitter at http://twitter. com/SamHananelAP SMOKING Tobaccofirmsgetpartial win over claims of effects Health Briefs By Marilynn Marchione The Associated Press Contrary to public per- ception and horrific cases that make headlines, seri- ous mental problems are declining among the na- tion's youth, and there has been a big rise in how many are getting help, a new study finds. The study is mostly good news: More children and teens are taking men- tal health medicines than ever before, but more also are getting therapy, not just pills. The biggest rise in treatment rates has been among the most trou- bled kids. "There's a concern out there that a lot of chil- dren and adolescents are receiving mental health treatments, particularly medications, that they don't need," especially for conditions such as atten- tion deficit hyperactivity disorder, said the study's leader, Dr. Mark Olfson, a psychiatrist at Colum- bia University Medical Center and the New York State Psychiatric Insti- tute. Instead, the results sug- gest "that at least in some ways, we're moving in the right direction," by getting help to kids who need it most, he said. The dark cloud: More than half of severely trou- bled kids get no help at all. The study used nation- wide surveys done by the federal Agency for Health- care Research and Quality over three periods from 1996 to 2012, covering more than 53,000 youths ages 6 to 17. Results are in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine. Some highlights, which compare the first survey to the most recent one: Problemsdeclining The percentage of youths with serious im- pairments dropped from 13 percent to 11 percent. "There's a public per- ception that there are more and more kids who have these disorders, and the new report challenges that," Olfson said. Other research has found drops in rates of binge drinking and dropping out of school, so the new study "does fit with other trends," he said. More are getting care Use of any outpatient mental health service rose from 9 percent to 13 per- cent. The rise was greatest for severely troubled kids, and went from 26 percent to 44 percent — from 1.56 million annually to 2.28 million. Among kids with less or no impairment, the portion getting treatment went from about 7 per- cent to nearly 10 percent, or from about 2.74 million kids a year to 4.19 million. Medication use is up The use of any men- tal health drug rose from about 6 percent to 9 per- cent. Among youths with severe problems, medica- tion use went from 18 per- cent to 32 percent. Among the rest — mild or no prob- lems — it went from 4 per- cent to 6 percent. Some people complain, "Oh my goodness, these poor little children are on these powerful drugs," said Dr. Gabrielle Carlson, a child and adolescent psy- chiatrist at Stony Brook University School of Med- icine on New York's Long Island. "But most of the kids offered these drugs have big, powerful prob- lems," and the real issue is finding more effective drugs and getting more kids the help they need, she said. Not just pills The percentage of youths getting therapy rose from 4 percent to 6 percent. That may reflect more access to care in gen- eral: Other research shows that medical visits of all kinds rose for these age groups over that time. The ADHD situation Use of stimulants such as methylphenidate, sold as Ritalin and other brands, rose from 4 per- cent of youths to 6.6 per- cent. These drugs are of- ten given for ADHD, which affects more than 1 in 10 children, according to the Centers for Disease Con- trol and Prevention. Many kids get no help About 56 percent of youths with serious trou- bles were not in care. "There's a tremendous amount of unmet need," said Dr. Brady Case, a child psychiatrist at Brad- ley Hospital in East Prov- idence, Rhode Island. It's possible that one reason serious impairment rates are falling "is that treat- ment is working" for those who get it, he said. CHILDREN THEASSOCIATEDPRESS A new study says more children and teens are taking mental health medicines than ever before, but more also are getting therapy. ONTHEWEB Study: www.nejm.org/ doi/full/10.1056/NEJM- sa1413512 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS America's largest tobacco companies must inform consumers that cigarettes were designed to increase addiction, but not that they lied to the public about the dangers of smoking, a federal appeals court ruled on Friday. Study: Fewer kids have severe mental problems Call 877-4DAD411 or visit www.fatherhood.gov be a dad today. Take time to WASHINGTON, D.C. Senate panel OKs letting VA docs give advice on pot WASHINGTON A GOP- controlled Senate panel Wednesday approved a plan to permit veterans to receive information about medical marijuana from their government doctors. The proposal by fresh- man Sen. Steve Daines would lift a rule blocking Department of Veterans Affairs doctors from dis- cussing the pros or cons of medical pot with their pa- tients. They would still not be able to prescribe it. Daines said veterans should be able to "talk openly and freely with their doctor about all op- tions available to them." The Appropriations Committee approved the measure by an 18-12 vote as an amendment to a bill funding the Department of Veterans Affairs. Four Republicans joined with panel Democrats in sup- port of the move. Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia permit the use of medical marijuana, which advocates say helps with conditions like chronic pain, glaucoma, anxiety, and nausea from chemotherapy or drugs to combat HIV. The measure narrowly failed the House last month by a 213-210 vote. In addition to Daines and every panel Demo- crat, GOP Sens. Lamar Al- exander of Tennessee, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana voted for the amendment. NEW YORK Study: Severe vision loss is most common in the South NEW YORK Health offi- cials say bad eyesight in the U.S. is most common in the South. A new report found the South was home to three- quarters of the U.S. coun- ties with the highest preva- lence of severe vision loss. The South also has higher rates of poverty, di- abetes and chronic disease. Health officials believe those problems are all re- lated to the vision loss. The Centers for Dis- ease Control and Preven- tion released the report Thursday. Overall, about 3 percent of people had se- vere vision loss. The high- est rate was from Owsley County, Kentucky, which surpassed 18 percent. The study is the CDC's first county-level assess- ment of blindness and se- vere vision loss. It's based on millions of U.S. Census Bureau survey responses from 2009 through 2013. NEW YORK Koch, Kravis donate total of $250M for hospitals, research NEW YORK Industrialist David H. Koch and finan- cier Henry R. Kravis have made separate donations totaling $250 million for hospitals and medical re- search in New York City. The Wall Street Journal reports Wednesday that Koch has given $150 mil- lion to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. His donation will help build a $1.3 billion, 23-story outpatient cancer center in Manhattan. It's expected to serve about 1,300 patients daily. Koch has been a mem- ber of Memorial Sloan Kettering's board of over- seers and managers since 1990. The Kravis foundation is giving $100 million to Rockefeller University. It's building a laboratory re- search facility that will span three city blocks. Kravis and his wife, Ma- rie-Josee Kravis, say their gift will enable scientists to "push the boundaries of biomedical knowledge." WASHINGTON, D.C. Peeking into healthy brains to see if Al- zheimer's is brewing WASHINGTON Sticky plaque gets the most at- tention but now healthy seniors at risk of Alzheim- er's are letting scientists peek into their brains to see if another culprit is lurking. No one knows what ac- tually causes Alzheim- er's. The suspects are the gunky amyloid (am-uh- LOID') in brain plaques, and tangles of a protein named tau that clog dying brain cells. New imaging can spot those tangles in living brains. Now researchers are adding tau brain scans to an ambitious study that's testing if an experimental drug might help healthy but at-risk people stave off Alzheimer's. It's the first drug study where scien- tists can track how both of Alzheimer's signature markers begin building up in older adults before memory ever slips. Researcher Reisa Sper- ling calls the combination of amyloid and tau a toxic duo. Chris' HerbShop (530)528-2930 333 So. Main St. Suite #D, Red Bluff, CA 96080 •VITAMINS • MINERALS • HERBS Open: Tuesday-Friday 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Serving Red Bluff for 30 years Look to us for Expert Eye Care. Board Certified by American Board of Ophthalmology Clinical Professor at UC Davis Medical Center Daniel M. King, M.D. Physician & Eye Surgeon 411 Cedar Street, Red Bluff (530) 527-6123 645Antelope Blvd. (across from the Tehama District Fairgrounds) at Frontier Village Frontier Village Farmers Market IsMoving! 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