The Great American Smokeout, sponsored by the American Cancer Society, is an annual event held the third Thursday of November that encourages smokers to make a plan to quit or to plan in advance and quit smoking on that day, in an effort to stop permanently. This year, the Smokeout will be Thursday. The event challenges people to stop using tobacco and helps people know about the tools they can use to quit and stay smoke-free. Fifty years after the release of the first Surgeon General's report on smoking and health, progress has been made. Since 1964, smoking prevalence among U.S. adults has been reduced by half. But tobacco use remains the leading preventable cause of disease, disability and death in the United States, according to a release on the Smokeout from the Kosciusko County Tobacco Free Coalition. In 2010, nearly two out of three adult smokers wanted to quit, and more than half had made an attempt for at least one day in the preceding year, according to the release. However, an estimated one out of five U.S. adults still smokes – more than 43 million people. And about 15 million people smoke tobacco in cigars or pipes. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death for men and women. About 87 percent of lung cancer deaths are thought to result from smoking. Smoking also causes cancers of the larynx (voice box), mouth, pharynx (throat), esophagus (swallowing tube) and bladder. It also has been linked to the development of cancers of the pancreas, cervix, ovary (mucinous), colon/rectum, kidney, stomach and some types of leukemia. Cigars and pipes cause cancers, too. Smoking is responsible for nearly one in three cancer deaths, and one in five deaths from all causes. Another 8.6 million people live with serious illnesses caused by smoking. From 1965 to today, cigarette smoking among adults in the United States decreased from more than 42 percent to around 20 percent. Strong smoke-free policies, media campaigns, and increases in the prices of tobacco products are at least partly credited for these decreases. Quitting smoking is beneficial to health at any age and has immediate and long-term benefits. Getting help through counseling or medications can double or triple the chances of quitting successfully. Research shows that smokers are most successful in kicking the habit when they have support, such as: • Telephone smoking-cessation hotlines • Stop-smoking groups • Online quit groups • Counseling • Nicotine replacement products • Prescription medicine to lessen cravings • Guide books • Encouragement and support from friends and family members Using two or more of these measures to help quit smoking works better than using any one of them alone. For example, some people use a prescription medicine along with nicotine replacement. Other people may use as many as three or four of the methods listed above. Each year, the Great American Smokeout also draws attention to the deaths and chronic diseases caused by smoking. Throughout the late 1980s and 1990s, many state and local governments responded by banning smoking in workplaces and restaurants, raising taxes on cigarettes, limiting cigarette promotions, discouraging teen cigarette use, and taking further action to counter smoking. These efforts continue today.
