Saturday, November 30, 2013

Smoking cessation campaigns

Last year the government spent $54 million on Tips from Former Smokers. These are very moving stories. Sad, too. Lives ruined, or dead. The CDC says 1.6 million were persuaded to quit and after 3 months 220,000 were still abstinent. I don't know how they track that, but I've never known anyone who quit smoking with the federal government's help.
http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/resources/ads/tips-2-ad-ellie-full.pdf

My dad quit when he began coughing blood in his 30’s; my father-in-law quit when he reached for the 3rd pack of the day; my son-in-law quit in his early 40s; my brother-in-law quit in his 50s with some back sliding; my niece quit because her son had asthma; my girlfriend quit after lung cancer treatment.  Most of the other family members I recall who were heavy smokers died of different types of cancer—lung, liver, throat, or heart disease.  We lost them much too soon.

Quitting is tough. But not nearly as bad as chemo or COPD or asthma and being sick for the rest of your life.

1 comment:

Vince @ PV Pro said...

The government will never "help" you quit. Their job is to keep smokers addicted overlapped with clever "Quit Smoking" campaigns that paint a euphoric picture.

It's very sad to see.

Have you ever read The Easy Way to Stop Smoking by Allen Carr?