World Tobacco Quote of the Day

“[O]ur study illustrates that cigarette pack displays in retail stores do trigger impulse buying of cigarettes among smokers, even those who are trying to quit, every time they visit a store.”
Professor Melanie Wakefield of the Cancer Council Victoria.
» Cigarette pack displays 'tempt quitters', The Australian (Thursday, November 22, 2007)

USA: New Survey Finds That Smokers Remain Unaware Of The Health Effects Of Smoking

A new national survey conducted by the American Legacy Foundation and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, indicates that major knowledge gaps exist in what smokers believe to be the risks of smoking compared with the actual realities of tobacco related disease and death. Experts believe these misperceptions may prevent smokers from trying to quit and successfully utilising proven smoking cessation treatments.

According to the survey many smokers underestimate the risk of developing lung cancer with four in 10 incorrectly believing that lung cancer depends more on genes than anything else. Furthermore, the survey found that up to a third of smokers think that certain activities such as exercise and taking vitamins could undo most of the effects of smoking. Misperceptions about the effects of nicotine found in cigarettes remain at the forefront.

Great American Smokeout!

Smokers Urged to Make a Plan to Quit

During American Cancer Society’s Great American Smokeout®

The American Cancer Society will celebrate the 31st anniversary of the Great American Smokeout on Thursday, November 15. With exactly half of the United States now protected by smoke-free laws, and a variety of cessation resources available, there has never been a better time to quit smoking and enjoy the health benefits.

The Great American Smokeout Web site (www.cancer.org/greatamericans) will feature new desktop helpers, including a Quit Clock and a Craving Stopper. These tools will be available by Nov. 1 and can be downloaded to a computer desktop to help smokers pick a quit day, prepare for quitting, and offer support during and after quitting. In addition, the site will continue to provide tips, tools, and resources, as well as the successful Quitline call back feature, which allows smokers to submit a short form to be directly contacted by a trained specialist who will provide assistance during a quit attempt.

In addition to encouraging smokers to make a plan to quit, the Great American Smokeout is a day for Americans to join the American Cancer Society and its sister advocacy organization, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action NetworkSM (ACS CAN) in their efforts to advocate for smoke-free laws in communities nationwide. The combination of smoke-free communities and smoking cessation support is critical to helping smokers quit and stay tobacco-free.

The American Cancer Society Great American Smokeout grew out of a 1971 event in Randolph, Mass., in which Arthur P. Mullaney asked people to give up cigarettes for a day and donate the money they would have spent on cigarettes to a high school scholarship fund. In 1974, Lynn R. Smith, editor of the Monticello Times in Minnesota, spearheaded the state’s first D-Day, or Don’t Smoke Day. The idea caught on, and on Nov. 18, 1976, the California Division of the American Cancer Society succeeded in getting nearly one million smokers to quit for the day. That California event marked the first Great American Smokeout, which went nationwide the next year.

Did you know....?

In 2006, an estimated 20.8% (45.3 million) of U.S. adults were current cigarette smokers; of these, 80.1% (36.3 million) smoked every day, and 19.9% (9.0 million) smoked some days. Among current cigarette smokers, an estimated 44.2% (19.9 million) had stopped smoking for more than 1 day during the preceding 12 months because they were trying to quit. Of the estimated 91 million persons who had smoked at least 100 cigarettes during their lifetimes (i.e., ever smokers), 50.2% (45.7 million) had quit smoking at the time of the interview.

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), 2007-11-09 (as seen on Smokefree.net)

College Students/College Smoking

Did you know that smoking rates are increasing for college age students?

• Between 1983 and 2003, a sustained decline in cigarette smoking occurred in all age groups except persons aged 18--24 years.
• Among 18-24 year olds, 27.6% report smoking, compared to 20.8% among all adults.
• The age at which Virginians started smoking is highest among 18-24 year olds (43%).

Preventions Connections is working to address this population and to make a difference through a number of projects targeting colleges and community colleges. Our goals are to:

#1: Increase the number of tobacco-free grounds policies in community colleges;
#2: Amend the parameters of college student health insurance to include coverage of cessation services;
#3: Promote the Virginia Quitline and health center cessation services for young adults at a community colleges;
#4: Enhance resources for medical professionals in health centers about smoking prevalence rates and cessation resources.

We've made such strides with underage smoking - let's kick it up a notch!